


We Do What We Have To

by iwanttowriteyouafic



Category: One Direction (Band), Zayn Malik (Musician)
Genre: 69, Angst, Art Student Zayn, Athlete Liam, Blowjobs, Bottom Liam, Bottom Zayn, College AU, Dirty Talk, Dom/sub Undertones, Frottage, Jealous Liam, M/M, Pining, Praise Kink, Riding, Rimming, Switching, Top Liam, Top Zayn, but mostly bottom zayn, face fucking, gets worse as it goes on lol, harry is russian, louis may or may not be having a crisis, niall's just very confused, porn stars/cam boys au, sort of, the porn to plot ratio is a bit ridiculous, they basically make home movies together and get paid for it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-25
Updated: 2016-06-27
Packaged: 2018-05-16 03:05:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 24,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5811247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwanttowriteyouafic/pseuds/iwanttowriteyouafic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"He watched the tape later, though, when Zayn had gone for a midnight shower and the apartment was silent. He skimmed through, desperately wanting to watch how they fit together before the clip is edited, but knowing that’s not what he’s looking for. No, he’s looking for the ending, where Zayn swaggers out of bed: plump lower caught between pearly white teeth, face eclipsing into a cheeky grin when he examines himself in the live feed. He looked directly into the camera, a tiny eyebrow raise accompanying his smirk giving hint that he’s enjoying the attention for a little more than what he’s being paid."</p><p> </p><p>(Or the one where Liam finds himself needing money quickly, and Zayn has a surprising suggestion of how to help.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> *** PLEASE DO NOT REPOST ANY OF MY WORKS ON OTHER SITES WITHOUT GETTING MY PERMISSION FIRST. Do not post copies of my work on livejournal, wattpad, fanfiction.net or anywhere, even if you have the intention of giving me credit. I do not want them on those sites at this point in time. So far, I have only given permission for my fic 'Pride' to be translated into Russian and posted on a Russian fanfiction website. Any other copies of my work that I come across will be reported. Please don't do it. It really sucks that I have to even write this note. ***

_‘You guys are so cute!!!! Shame your just friends :(‘_

_‘i wuld give away my firs kid to see u guys makeout’_

_‘does anyone else thing they’d be a cute couple? EVEN THEIR SHIP NAME SOUNDS GOOD. ZIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM’_

_‘you can sing… nice nice… now for the sex tape………’_

Liam read the comments, mouth falling open in surprise. He wasn’t expecting such a strong reaction to their video, let alone _this_. Dozens of people had decided to leave their two cents at the bottom of the page, some more explicit than others. Very few of them actually concentrated on the purpose of the video – the singing, that duet that plays on loop in Liam’s mind and has been since Zayn suggested it two weeks ago when they were halfway drunk and his eyelids were drooping, looking over at Liam with this casual version of excited that Liam had never been able to manage – and instead just focussed on, well. On Liam’s heart eyes.

God, it was so fucking _obvious_. Watching the video back was beyond embarrassing. Every three seconds Liam’s gaze would flicker to Zayn, and wouldn’t leave until the other looked over at him and smiled. Even then Liam was left with this embarrassingly soft expression, lips curved up in a not-so-secret lilt. No amount of editing could conceal it. Liam had found that out the hard way.

 _‘Just watched it !’_ Zayn texted him, his goofy face lighting up Liam’s screen. _‘Looks siiiick’_

Liam cringed, wondering how closely Zayn had watched it. Still, he tempted fate. _‘yeh?’_

Zayn’s response came a few minutes later, just when Liam was contemplating deleting the video and claiming they’d been hacked. _‘im gonna have to work on some of my higher notes but pretty decent for our first!’_

 _‘ur high nots were perfec’_ Liam responded before he could help himself. _‘whn will u b home?’_

_‘in 5 x.’_

Liam bit on a nail nervously, not sure what to do with himself now. His eyes kept flickering to the video, the black and white emphasising the twinkle in his eyes. He’s a fucking mess.

He shut his computer quickly, looking around. He’d already cleaned the room compulsively, the nerves of having just uploaded the video sending him into a procrastination frenzy. The TV had been muted hours ago, Liam finding the professional music videos too patronising, mocking him, especially the love ballads. He couldn’t bear to attempt his coursework or mix a new song or eat or, come to think of it, he doesn’t particularly feel like breathing; in fact, he feels like dying, because there’s absolutely no way Zayn didn’t notice his five-thousand _copious_ stares in the four minute video, and, fuck, Liam’s just gone and ruined their two-year friendship. Zayn’s going to ask him to move out, to find another roommate because he can’t deal with having a guy crushing on him, can’t deal with _Liam_ , can’t-

“Looks like you’ve had a productive day,” Zayn teased, dumping his bag on the kitchen island. Liam looked over to him in a panic, barely catching himself from kneeling over on the spot. It’s just, fuck. Zayn looks so great without even trying. He’s just wearing trackies and an old, over-sized sweatshirt, both of which are covered in splotches of paint. His hands are blackened with ink, a hint of it above his eyebrow where his soft, fallen fringe hasn’t completely eclipsed it. Nothing expensive or fancy clings to him, nothing new or extraordinary. He’s just Zayn, and Liam is absolutely fucked.

Liam snapped back into focus as Zayn looked at him inquisitively. “Huh?” he responded dumbly.

“You cleaned,” Zayn pointed out, eyes raking over the semi-neat piles of textbooks and lack of clothes in the immediate area.

Liam fought off a blush. “I had nothing to do.”

“Perfect bloody roommate,” Zayn muttered to himself, shaking his head fondly. Liam couldn’t help himself from blushing this time.

“Dinner’s in the fridge,” he said quickly. He legged it to his room, not bothering to wait for Zayn’s reply. He really needed a shower. And a less obvious personality.

 

+

 

He hated the walk back from the communal showers, where his hair was still dripping and his flip-flops were squelching with every step, even though he’d spent ages making sure his legs and feet were completely dry. He also hated Louis fucking Tomlinson, who thought it would be hilarious to steal his shorts.

(“You should be thanking me,” he had said, half out the door and ready to run, shorts in hand. “Zayn will see you walk in half-naked and jump you then and there. I can even stand outside and play some music for you, being the great friend I am.”

“Don’t you dare,” Liam all but yelled, eyes wide.

Louis grinned wickedly. “Later, Payno,” he said, door closing loudly behind him. Liam was going to strangle him.)

So here he was, towel clutched tightly around his waist while he tried to balance his toiletries in one hand, unable to open the door because his hands were full. He stared at the door determinedly, knowing that this would be the most convenient moment for his hidden powers on telekinesis to kick in. It did not.

He looked up and down the hallway, making sure the place was deserted. Aside from an ant or two coming out of Horan’s room across the hall, not a creature was in sight. Liam went into action, unwrapping his towel and slinging it over his shoulder, opening the door with a force that was probably unnecessary, and slamming it quickly behind him. He could hear Horan’s laughter faintly through the door, making him blush madly as he dumped his toiletries on the table.

Zayn didn’t notice any of this, thank God. He was staring at his laptop in that way that Liam knew very little would divert his attention. Liam shrugged to himself, retying his towel before carefully picking everything back up to put away. He almost dropped everything when he heard Zayn start cackling from the living area, snorts of laughter drifting into his room.

“What’s so funny?” Liam asked, peering in from his doorway. Zayn was bent over laughing, one hand on his knee and the other clutching at the arm of the couch for support. His face was scrunched up, mouth wide, dissolving into more laughter when he looked up at Liam’s curious face.

Liam waited it out, smiling a little while Zayn attempted (and failed, multiple times) to compose himself. “Oh God,” he said, wiping at his eyes. “Holy shit.”

“What?” Liam repeated, now almost grinning.

“Liam James Payne,” Zayn began, nose scrunched up from his effort to hold back laughter. “We have been invited to do porn.”

“ _What?_ ” Louis shouted in surprise, falling through their front door.

“This is not your apartment,” Zayn pointed out to him, not looking up. “But yes, porn. And we’ve been offered quite a bit of money for it, too.”

“Why?” Louis asked, sprawling himself on the couch adjacent to Zayn.

“The video we posted, I guess,” Zayn answered, shrugging. “It got some attention.”

“What video?”

Zayn angled the laptop towards him. “Here, I’ll show you.”

Liam thinks he’s gone into shock. Actually, he’s not thinking much at all. An unsettling feeling was spreading throughout is body, accompanied by the sound of white noise deluding his mind. All he can think is _porn with Zayn porn with Zayn porn with Zayn_ on repeat, a mantra getting louder and more insistent the longer the thought lingers. He shook his head of the thought, eyes a little glassy as he zoned back in.

“You’ve not even gotten two thousand views,” Louis said. “How can you already be on the radar? Why am I not on the radar?”

“It just takes one person, I guess,” Zayn said. “And you would be shite at porn, mate.”

“Hey,” Louis squawked indignantly. “I’ll have you know that my ass is _fantastic_ and would work the camera until I’m paid millions.”

“That’s ambitious,” Zayn said, laughing.

Liam sat down calmly. His eyes were fixed on the back of the laptop, eyes burning through the silicon casing. Zayn ducked his head until he was in Liam’s line of sight, grinning widely.

“What do you say, Li – give it a try?” he joked, eyes bright.

Liam blinked in surprise, heart stopping. “You- I- we-“

“Enough with the pronouns,” Louis cut him off, reclining further into the sofa.

“I’m kidding, Li,” Zayn said, a little more serious. “I’m not going to respond to the email.”

Liam nodded after a beat, fingers playing with the hem of his shirt nervously. He swallowed it down, though, trying to put on a cocky-ish grin. “Am I not good enough for you?”

Zayn smiled, satisfied. “Li, if I were going to do porn with a bloke, it would be you,” Zayn answered him, shaking his head with the remnants of laughter. He closed his laptop with a bit of finality, before scooting closer to Liam so that he was sitting right next to him. “Movie night?” he asked, reaching for the remote on the other side of Liam.

“Sure,” Liam answered, because the question seemed to be directed at him. “Iron Man?”

“No more Iron Man,” Louis groaned. “Please, enough.”

“Iron Man it is,” Zayn grinned.

Liam settled in a bit further, trying to loosen the tension in his bones. Zayn had pretty much dropped the topic, it seemed, with it having pretty much no impact on him at all. Liam pretended the same went for him, not bringing it up again a single time that night, and changing the topic whenever Louis did. It didn’t affect him if it wasn’t true. (And if maybe, possibly, he got himself off that night to the thought of Zayn spread out on a bed, smiling lewdly at the camera before looking back at Liam, fucking him slowly then quickly then slowly again, that was no one’s business. And if the thought of claiming Zayn for all the world to see excited him a little, that’s no one’s business, either.)

 

+

 

“Aren’t you even a little bit tempted?” Louis asked the next morning when they were in the gym. Some of their teammates were scattered around, mostly doing light weight training and cardio before their first class of the day. No one wanted to push themselves, well aware of the gruelling training they’d have the next night. Football was hard enough without the added grievance of sore muscles, according to the rest of the team.

Liam didn’t follow the same sentiment. His arms strained under the weight of the bar, threatening to give out and put Louis to use as a spotter. He clenched his jaw, glaring at Louis’s face as it peered down at him. “No,” he grunted. Arms down, arms up.

“You sure?” Louis prompted. “Don’t you like the thought of fucking Malik in front of a web cam?”

Liam quickly dumped the bar back in its place, sitting up and spluttering. He looked around wildly, wondering if anyone had heard. Thank fuck they were almost all by the treadmills.

“ _Louis_ ,” Liam hissed.

Louis put his hands up in defence. “I just said what you were thinking.”

“I was _not_ thinking that and I am _not_ tempted,” Liam snapped at him, pushing himself off of the bench in defiance.

Louis watched him for a moment, then shrugged. “Fine,” he said, trading places. “But don’t come whining to me in a month when you’ve got blue balls and no sexy time with Malik.”

“You’re talking quite loudly,” Liam told him.

Louis grinned up at him. “You wouldn’t love me any other way.”

 

+

 

Zayn always looks a bit off when Liam comes back from the gym or training, Liam has come to notice. Whether it’s the stench or how gross Liam looks with sweat pouring from him, he doesn’t know. But for whatever reason, Zayn never speaks up about it. He just greets Liam when he walks in, then disappears into his room or leaves the apartment all together.

Today, though, Zayn didn’t even look up.

“Hey,” Liam greeted anyway. Zayn didn’t respond. “Zayn?”

The boy in question was sitting on the floor in front of the couch, cocooned by blankets and staring blankly at the muted television in front of him. Liam crept closer, crouching a little to try and find Zayn’s face in the mountain of blankets. Zayn just sniffed up at him. His eyes were a little glassy and bloodshot, tiny tears threatening to leak from the corners. His nose was red to match, contrasting with the unusual paleness of his skin that looked somewhere between grey and a sickly green. Liam could see the collar of Zayn’s warmest sweatshirt poking out, but still the boy was shivering. Liam wondered how Zayn could become sick so quickly, when he had been absolutely fine just last night.

“Before you ask, I have no idea,” Zayn told him, voice a bit congested.

“It’s probably that virus that’s been going around,” Liam said. He reached forward to feel Zayn forehead, keeping it there for a moment when Zayn leant in to it. “You’ll be fine by tomorrow, I think.”

“I want to be fine now,” Zayn said a little petulantly.

“I know, babe,” Liam said, smiling just a tiny bit at Zayn’s pout. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Soup?” Zayn asked, blinking slowly. “And cough medicine or something? We ran out – I checked.”

“Okay, I’ll go get that,” Liam said. “Do you want me to grab anything for you while you wait?”

“A new face, if possible,” Zayn said. “Mine feels like mashed potato.”

Liam laughed quietly, shaking his head in amusement. He scavenged the apartment for his wallet, finding it under a textbook he should have finished summarising a week ago. Whoops.

“I’ll be back in fifteen,” Liam called out before he left. Zayn made a pitiful sound, resembling a quiet, screaming deer, or something to that effect. Liam wondered how he could be so adorable when he was sick, while Liam resembled something along the lines of a beached whale when he was down for the count.

The trip to the campus café was relatively quick, but the waiting took ages. Despite being only one of a half-dozen people in line, it took almost five minutes to get his order in, and then another ten until it was ready to be collected. But it was only when he went to pay for it that things really started going downhill.

“Declined?” he repeated, just to check.

“Yeah,” the cashier answered apologetically. “Do you have any cash on you?”

Liam knew the answer to that, but he didn’t want to admit it with the soup and medicine that Zayn needed lying there on the bench, mocking him without doing anything. The card had been declined yesterday and the day before as well, but it hadn’t seemed like a problem – he always had a few notes spare to buy whatever he needed, was never particularly caught up. “I don’t, no,” Liam said, biting his lip. “Do you- ah. Is there an I.O.U system or something?”

The cashier’s eyes softened in sympathy. “I’m sorry-“

“I’ve got it,” someone said, sliding their card and food onto the bench. Liam looked over, finding the kid from across the hall unloading piles of snacks onto the bench.

Liam shook his head. “It’s fine, I can figure something else out.”

“Shut it, Payno,” Niall told him, his voice sunny with its accent. “I’ve been listening to your roommate attempting to cough his lungs out for the past three hours. You need the soup.”

“How do you know it’s not for me?” Liam asked.

“You wouldn’t be letting me pay for it if it was,” Niall shrugged, smiling gratefully when the cashier offered to put his things into bags. “How is he, anyway?” he asked.

“Zayn?” Liam clarified. Niall nodded. “Looks like an absolute wreck, to be honest.”

“Still probably the best looking thing on campus,” Niall joked. Liam laughed, nodding. “How long have you guys been dating for – six months? Seven?”

“We aren’t, actually,” Liam said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Bullshit,” Niall said, laughing. “The walls are thin, Payno. I hear you guys like routine, every Saturday morning.”

Liam’s heart sunk into his stomach. “I have training Saturday mornings, so,” he said quietly, trying to play it off.

“Oh,” Niall said. Liam collected his things, ignoring how confused Niall looked. Liam didn’t particularly want to tell him that, hey, the roommate he fancies has been fucking someone else for the last however long without telling him, has purposely gone out of his way to make sure Liam didn’t find out, didn’t _trust_ him to know. Whatever. He’ll get over it. “It’s weird, though,” Niall said thoughtfully. “Because on those morning, I always hear-“

“I need to call my parents real quick,” Liam cut him off. Niall’s surprised face had him wincing, realising how rude he was being. “Sorry, I just mean, like-“

“Nah, go ahead,” Niall smiled. “It’s all good.”

“Thanks,” Liam said gratefully, slipping his phone out of his pocket. He balanced the soup and medicine precariously, wishing the damn medicine wasn’t so unnecessarily big.

There were three rings before his mother picked up the landline, sounding a little breathless. “Hello?”

“Hey Mom, it’s me,” Liam greeted.

“Oh Liam, honey,” his mom said, sounding surprised. “Oh love, you’ve called me at the worst possible time. I’ve just been called back to work.”

“That’s fine, I just needed to ask a question,” Liam told her. She waited for her sound of approval, then barrelled on. “My card keeps getting declined, and I was wondering if you knew what was happening?”

“Liam.”

“Mom?”

“Did you get a job?”

Liam looked down at his feet nervously, wincing a little. “About that-“

“Your father said he wasn’t going to keep funding you if you didn’t start helping yourself, baby,” his mom scolded. “I may not agree with him cutting you off cold turkey, but you know how he is.”

“What am I supposed to do about rent and food? Is he still paying for that?” Liam asked.

There was a pause, one that said anything. “I’m not sure,” she replied slowly. “I can try and wire some money, maybe-“

“No, it’s okay,” Liam said quickly, closing his eyes in frustration. The last thing he needed was to have his single mother of three bail him out because he was stupid and forgot to go job hunting. “I’ll figure something out,” he assured her.

“If you’re sure,” she said. “Could I call you back this afternoon? I’ve really got to run.”\

“Sure, Mom,” Liam said. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” she said quickly, hanging up the line. Liam slid the phone back into his pocket, wondering how long it would be until the credit on it ran out.

 

+

 

Liam knew he had to call his dad, he did. But the last time he spoke to his dad was to give his bank details to have his monthly allowance wired to him, almost two years ago. He would receive an email from the man every now and again, but really it was all for formalities. A “Merry Christmas” here, a “Greetings from the Congo” there. They were more associates than anything.

He stared down at his phone blankly, arms tense and jaw clenched. He really didn’t want to have to do it, but he had no choice. A letter had come in three days ago requesting the unpaid rent, and Liam knew that he only had a matter of time before Zayn found out. Luckily he had been too sick to get to the mail before Liam did, buying Liam time to sort it all out. Now with his classes finished for the week and his coursework (mostly) up to date, he couldn’t avoid it any longer.

“What’s wrong babe?” Zayn asked. Liam looked up, finding him leaning against his bedroom’s doorframe, casual as can be as he chewed on an apple.

“Nothing,” Liam lied, trying to look nonchalant.

Zayn raised an eyebrow, unimpressed as he walked over to sit on the arm of the couch. “Are you aware that your ears twitch when you lie?”

“Really?”

“No,” Zayn laughed. “But you do get all panicked. What’s going on?”

There was no point in lying, really. “I’m trying to convince myself to call my dad.”

Zayn’s eyes grew wider, a low whistle leaving his lips. “Shit,” he said, nodding in understanding. “What’s the occasion?”

“Just need to ask a question,” Liam shrugged.

Zayn nodded again. “Want me here while you talk?”

“Nah,” Liam dismissed, smiling faintly.

“Well then, I’m going to buy some ice-cream,” Zayn said, pulling on a jacket. “I’d ask if you want some, but you’re just going to steal mine anyway.”

“Hey,” Liam protested. Zayn just chuckled lowly as he left, throwing a cheeky smile over his shoulder. Liam tensed up again the moment the door closed behind him, but he didn’t let himself hesitate before he grabbed the phone and dialled his dad’s number.

And. Well. He didn’t answer. His assistant did, though, but was barely any help. Liam left the conversation with the knowledge that his father was on vacation somewhere without his phone, and had no intention of coming back soon.

“He did ask me to pass on a message in case you called, though,” the assistant told him, a nasally quality to her voice. “He asked me to tell you that, uh, let me grab the note.” There was a rustle down the line as the girl shuffled some things around, letting out a puff of air when she located what she was looking for. “He said ‘It’s time for you to be a man and stop spending what you don’t earn. I’ll check back in with you in a few months’ time, and match what you have in the bank’.”

Liam listened carefully, a sinking feeling spreading throughout him. A few months? What about rent? And textbooks for the new semester? And fees for the football team? And groceries?

“I’m sorry I can’t give any more information,” the girl apologised. “If you want I’m sure I can find someone to help you job hunt?”

Liam let out a puff of air. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, then promptly hung up.

He slid off the couch and onto the floor, running a shaky hand through his hair. He could feel his back and forehead beginning to dampen with sweat, nerves starting to take over. His breathing was coming out a little laboured as his mind swirled down, down, so far down, oh _fuck_.

What the hell was he going to do? If he couldn’t pay rent, he couldn’t live here – it’s as simple as that. And if Zayn didn’t have a roommate, there was no way he’d be able to keep the apartment. Everyone had already been settled in preparation for the new semester in two months, limiting any and all options for him. And, shit, if Liam couldn’t afford to live here, he definitely wasn’t going to be able to pay the tuition. Or his phone bill. Or internet or school supplies or-

“I’m such a dumbass,” Zayn said, pushing the door back open. “I got all the way to the store, was lining up for a solid few minutes before I realised I didn’t bring any money, and- hey, you okay?”

There must have been something on Liam’s face that gave Zayn all the answers he needed, because within moments Liam was engulfed by warm, wiry arms. Liam turned his face into Zayn’s neck, trying not to release a number of pitiful noises while he shuddered in effort. Zayn ran a hand through his hair, rubbing slow circles into his scalp under Liam’s breathing evened out, if only slightly.

“I have to move out,” Liam said after a while. Zayn stiffened beneath him, hand stilling in his hair.

“What?” he choked out, voice low.

“My dad’s cut me off,” Liam explained, sniffing wetly. “I’m not able to pay for food, let alone rent.”

Zayn’s breath hitched a little, but he made no other response. He resumed playing with Liam’s hair though, arms curling a little tighter around him. They sat in silence, the only sound coming from their quiet breathing and the sound of rain pattering against the window. Liam fought back tears, knowing this was it. Even if he were to get a job the next morning he wouldn’t be able to pay for all the expenses he had, not with how demanding his course was, and he refused to be a burden on anyone else.

“I’m sorry,” Liam said quietly, sniffing.

“Hey,” Zayn said softly, using a finger to raise Liam’s chin. “You have nothing to be sorry about,” he said determinedly. “And we’ll figure it out.”

“We’ve run out of time, Zayn,” Liam told him, lowering his had again. “Rent’s overdue, and I’m not going to let you clean out your bank account to keep me here.”

“I’d rob a bank to keep you here, Leemo,” Zayn told him, smiling wryly. Liam let out a short laugh, but it was hollow. Both of them sat with the weight of the situation building around them, neither knowing what to do.

Liam grinned in bitter amusement, a sarcastic lilt to his lips. “We could always take the porno job,” he snorted, shaking his head.

Zayn didn’t laugh. “We could,” he said.

Liam lifted his head, trying to gauge Zayn’s reaction. Zayn stared back at him, virtually expressionless. “Really?” Liam asked, trying to find a crack in Zayn’s façade. There was none.

“If it kept you in school,” Zayn said, shrugging impassively.

Liam pulled away from him, noting how uncomfortable Zayn looked all of a sudden. “You can’t honestly-“

“You suggested it,” Zayn snapped defensively, looking down at his hands.

Liam was so, so confused. “But- you’re straight! Why would you want to do that with me?”

“I never said I was straight,” Zayn mumbled.

“You-“ Liam broke off, eyes becoming impossibly wide. “But what about Rebecca? Perrie?”

“How about you and Danielle, huh?” Zayn countered. “It doesn’t have to mean anything, Liam. All I’m saying is that if this… thing is our last hope, I’m flexible enough to not be straight for as long as it takes to get you a proper job.”

Zayn was still adamantly looking anywhere but at Liam, a hard set to his jaw. Liam melted, mentally kicking himself for upsetting Zayn. Here Zayn was, offering to do the unthinkable for him, and he was just bombarding him with questions and being downright inappropriate. “Sorry,” Liam said, grabbing one of Zayn hands. He ran a thumb over the little ink bird there, trying to apologise with his actions. He had always been shit at expressing himself in any other way. “I can’t let you do that, though.”

“Why the hell not?” Zayn retorted. “I want to help.”

“Imagine if your parents found out,” Liam pointed out. “Your Baba would disown the both of us.”

Zayn considered this, a smile gradually appearing. “He loves you too much to disown you, Li.”

Liam laughed a little, enjoying the moment while it lasted. Zayn pulled on his hair gently, turning Liam’s head to face him front on.

“We could, though,” Zayn said quietly. “I’ve kind of always wanted to experiment a little. I didn’t really consider you as a candidate, but I could be persuaded.”

Liam ignored the slight against him, instead focussing on the point. “I don’t think I’d be any good at it.”

“You’ll be great,” Zayn said, eyes dark in the poor light. Liam swallowed a little thickly. “And, besides, they can cover up any mishaps with that funky music they use.”

Liam snorted a little too loudly in the quiet apartment. Zayn’s nose scrunched up as he laughed a little, a halo of light behind his head.

“So,” he said, suddenly nervous. “Are you in, or…?”

Liam took a deep breath, releasing it through his nose. “Let’s hope Louis never finds out.”

 

+

 

Liam stumbled out of his room on Saturday morning, confused as to why the kitchen light was already on. His question was answered when Zayn popped out from behind the fridge door, arms full with ingredients. He had to use his hip to close the door, even his mouth being put to use in biting down on a bag of cheese. Dumping all the food onto the bench, he looked up at Liam with near-crazed eyes.

“How much coffee have you consumed?” Liam asked warily, rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

Zayn waved his hand in dismissal. “Not important. Omelette?”

“Do you even know how to make omelettes?” Liam asked, sitting down on one of the kitchen stools.

“Watched a how-to clip,” Zayn said, pulling out some cutlery with enough volume to have Liam wincing inwardly. Zayn frowned over at him. “Don’t you have training?”

“The team we were supposed to verse tomorrow forfeited, so we got the weekend off,” Liam answered. “No sleep in?”

“Didn’t sleep,” Zayn said. He began preparing food, talking a mile a minute. “I did some research for a new project, about the Russian Revolution and NEP or summat, then watched a few episodes of that show you like – and what, by the way, is with the chicken that shows up randomly? How did it get in? – and then I thought ‘ _Hey, I should probably look into that porn thing’_. So I emailed the guy who emailed me on Monday, and said that we were interested but needed details, and then he sent me a whole bunch of stuff like four hours ago. And then I figured I should research all that shit, and learnt some graphic and disgusting shit, but also some helpful things. And now I’m trying to figure out how we’d go about it, like, who would do it in the ass, you know? And then I got to thinking-“

“Zayn,” Liam cut him off calmly.

“Yes Liam?”

“What the fuck,” Liam said.

Zayn released the knife onto the chopping board, blowing his sweaty fringe out of his face as he hiccupped. “I’m a bit tired.”

Liam nodded, somewhere between concerned and terrified. “Want to have a nap?”

Zayn seemed to deflate before his eyes. “Yeah,” he said, sounding like the world’s most exhausted person.

Liam rubbed his back a little as he walked past, shuffling towards his bedroom. “I’ll wake you up for lunch, okay?”

“M’kay.”

Liam didn’t know how to make omelettes, so he just used the already cracked eggs to make scramble on toast. He decided to be a little fancy, sprinkling some baby spinach and herbs on top, paired with a pinch of salt and pepper. His mouth was watering as he sat down, forkful halfway to his mouth when there was a knock on the door.

Greeting him on the other side, looking way too innocent for someone who practically threw Liam’s breakfast away from him, was a freshman with too-curly hair and offensive dimples.

“Hi,” the boy said. Liam noted the thick Russian accent.

“Hi?”

“Is Zen ‘ere?” the boy asked, blinking like a cartoon deer.

“He’s asleep,” Liam said slowly. “Can I take a message?”

“Please can you tell ‘im ‘arry ‘as been ‘ere,” the boy asked.

“You’re Harry, right?” Liam asked,

“Da.”

It was too early for this. “Alright.”

“Thank ‘ou,” Harry said with a smile, green eyes sparkling. Liam just nodded slowly, closing the door as the boy walked away. Who was that guy? Why was he here so early on a Saturday?

Oh. Right. Saturday. Zayn’s secret sexcapades.

The rest of his morning had a bit of a sour taste. His food didn’t taste as good as he thought it would, there was nothing on telly, and he was beyond bored. He was restless, that type of fidgety where there was nothing in particular he was itching to do but was aching for something anyway.

Liam pulled Zayn’s laptop open, locating the email he had been talking about earlier. It was… interesting, to say the least. Mostly it consisted of different legal agreements and contracts they’d have to sign, different formalities that would have to be undertaken so as to protect their privacy and the company’s reputation.

At the bottom of the email, however, was what they were looking for specifically. A web cam, sort of, where Zayn and Liam were essentially expected to make home videos and then send them off for editing. Zayn must have enquired about how kinky or whatever they were supposed to get, because the email went on to explain that no, they do not have to do anything that made either of them uncomfortable, and the aim was to depict two college sweethearts exploring each other, or something. It sounded all a bit poetic for a description of porn, but Liam wasn’t there to judge.

He read through the basic conditions, like the minimum they would have to submit each week, how their payment started at a set amount but could increase depending on how many views they got, the site’s strict rule on wearing protection, etc. After a while it all seemed to blur together, a massive slab of information about a life he never even thought of engaging in, something he still wasn’t sure he wanted.

But the thought of Zayn… No, he couldn’t go there. It’s one thing to agree to do this for business, but it’s a whole other thing to exploit Zayn’s generosity to feed his own stupid fantasy. Even if he can’t wait to see what Zayn always hides beneath jeans and baggy shirts, can’t wait to have his mouth on the boy’s smooth, honey coloured skin, can’t wait to see if Zayn wants to ride him, or fuck him, wants Liam to take the lead or would prefer to hold the reigns-

On second thought, screw having the morning off. Liam desperately needs to go to the gym.

 

+

 

 _“Zaynie-poo_ ,” Liam cooed softly, trying to pry the covers off of Zayn’s face. “Time to wake up.” Zayn groaned loudly, burrowing further into the mattress. His face scrunched up, wincing in the daylight. Liam pet his face a little. “C’mon babe, it’s past one.”

“Five more hours,” Zayn mumbled, mushing his face into the pillow.

Liam laughed quietly. “No, no more hours.”

“ _Leeyum_ ,” Zayn whined.

“I made lunch,” Liam prompted.

“More reason to stay in bed.”

“ _Hey_ ,” Liam squawked, a little put out. “My cooking isn’t _that_ bad.”

“Shh,” Zayn muttered. He lifted a hand from under the covers, waving it around blindly until he found Liam’s face. “Shh.”

“Zayn,” Liam mumbled out from under Zayn’s palm, smiling fondly. “Wake the fuck up.”

“Sleep the fuck down,” Zayn countered. Without even cracking his eyes open he grabbed Liam around the neck and pulled him down onto the bed beside him. He pushed at Liam’s chest until he was lying flat, before curling his body until he was pressed up against him, arm splayed over his torso.

“My hair’s still wet from the shower,” Liam told him, trying to sit up.

Zayn pushed him back down. “It’s too early for chatter.”

“It’s the middle of the day,” Liam reminded him.

“Too early.”

Liam gave up, instead letting himself relax for a few minutes. The bed was warm from Zayn’s body heat, cushioned by a ridiculous amount of blankets and pillows. It was practically a nest, one that was incredibly comfortable despite having a mattress with the firmness of a brick. Sunlight streamed in from the cracks in the curtain gently, not too bright as the sky was more overcast. Everything was soft and quiet and gentle. Zayn buried his nose into Liam’s chest, sighing softly.

“I read through the email,” Liam said quietly, not wanting to ruin the calm that had settled over them.

“Hmm?” Zayn murmured, lifting his head the tiniest bit in acknowledgement. “What do you think?”

“It seems simple enough,” Liam said. He paused for a bit, sucking on his bottom lip nervously. “What do you think?”

Zayn shrugged minimally, tightening his arm around Liam’s torso. “’m good with whatever.”

“Yeah?”

Zayn looked up at him then, golden eyes softly focussed. “We’ll only go as far as you’re comfortable with.”

They both paused for a moment, searching each other’s face for any hesitation. It was like a game of chicken, one that Liam wasn’t sure how to play. Does he initiate it? Does he let Zayn? Everything was uncertain. It made Liam suddenly uncomfortable, not wanting to continue the conversation.

“A guy came to see you this morning,” Liam said, clearing his throat. “Someone called Harry?”

“Oh, cool,” Zayn said, yawning. He stretched a little, limbs tightening then relaxing around Liam. “Did you manage to understand his accent?”

“Yeah,” Liam said slowly, trying to read Zayn’s response. The boy seemed pretty casual about the whole thing.

“I better text him, then,” Zayn sighed, pushing himself up. He ruffled Liam’s hair for a moment, smiling fondly, before slithering out of the bed and out the door. Liam groaned inwardly, scraping his hands down his face. He stared up at the ceiling, wondering how complicated his life was about to become.

 

+

 

“Holy shit,” Zayn said when he walked in, leaning his back against the door. He stared straight ahead of him, eyes wide and chest tight. He released a breath, shaking his head.

“What?” Liam asked, lifting his head off the couch.

“I just scanned through the paperwork,” Zayn answered. He collapsed on the couch, bewildered when he looked at Liam. “We’re officially certified porn stars.”

To be honest, it hadn’t settled in for Liam yet. He’s not really sure when it will. Still, he could see how the magnitude of the situation had fallen upon Zayn. He didn’t look nervous, per se – more like he was having a moment of clarity. It’s the same look he wore when he had dreamt a particularly weird dream and was both amused and terrified of how crazy his imagination could be. Zayn looked over at Liam, shaking his head again.

“You okay?” Liam asked, sitting up a little.

“Yeah,” Zayn said after a beat. “It’s just…” he trailed off, raking a hand down his face. Liam let him sort his thoughts out, knowing he might close himself off if Liam pushed. “I just don’t understand how we just… fall into it, you know?”

Liam tilted his head, confused. “What do you mean?”

“Like,” Zayn said, licking his lips. He sat up a little straighter, leaning forward so he was barely still in his seat. “How we’re supposed to jump from being like this to… like, doing stuff.”

“I guess we just take it a step at a time, right?” Liam mumbled. He wish he had a better answer, but he was unsure himself. How was he supposed to separate fantasy from reality, separate how he wants to be with Zayn with how he has to be?

Zayn nodded. He shifted jerkily, like he caught himself midway through a movement. “Can we-“ he began, then cut himself off. He slumped a little, eyes lowering.

“Can we what?” Liam asked, trying to look encouraging. “It’s okay.”

Zayn looked up through his lashes momentarily, searching Liam’s face, before he dropped his gaze again. He let out a breath. “I don’t want my first kiss with you to be on a camera,” he mumbled.

“You…” Liam drifted off, his brain catching up. And then thoughts just stopped.

“I know it sounds stupid,” Zayn continued. “But, like, I don’t want just anyone seeing that. It’s, like, a private thing, you know?” he explored, eyes once again searching Liam’s face. When Liam didn’t answer, couldn’t answer, he visibly retreated into himself. “Never mind. It’s stupid.”

He went to stand up, but Liam grabbed his wrist, more on reflex than anything. “N-no,” Liam managed to get out. He looked up at Zayn, noticing how they mirrored each other in how they baited their breaths. Liam let out a puff of air. “It’s not stupid. It’s, um. I would like that, too.”

“Really?” Zayn questioned, looking unconvinced. “Because I don’t wanna do it if it’s going to make you uncomfortable.”

“I’m fine with it,” Liam said faux confidently. He stood up, wiping his hands on his jeans, sudden adrenaline running through him. “Let’s do it, then.”

Zayn’s eyes widened in surprise. “Now?”

The adrenaline snapped out of Liam’s body, leaving only an embarrassed chill in its wake. “Oh, ah. I suppose not, then.”

Zayn’s eyes softened. “We can-“

“It’s okay, really,” Liam said. “We’ll do it whenever. We’ve got time. Like maybe before we-“

Zayn cut him off, surging forward to press their lips together. His hands came up to hold the sides of Liam’s face, each finger supplying a curl of warmth to his cheeks. They weren’t touching anywhere else, almost awkward in their stance, especially with neither of them moving a single muscle. Zayn’s lips were chapped, the tougher bits of skin catching slightly on Liam’s stubble where Zayn had somewhat missed his target. Liam could quite clearly hear Niall’s laughter from across the hall, as well as some loud conversation from down the hallway. It was unbearably silent. Liam had no idea what to do. It was perfect.

Zayn pulled back after a few seconds, eyes a little crazed but mostly unsure. “Well,” he said, licking his lips again. Liam’s eyes followed the movement, gleeful that Zayn was tasting _him_. “That’s what that’s like.”

“Yeah,” Liam said, hoping he didn’t sound as breathless as he felt.

Zayn cracked a smile then. “You’ve kissed guys before!” he reminded him, shoving him playfully.

“I’ve never kissed my best mate before, though,” Liam pointed out.

“Better get used to it,” Zayn told him, winking dramatically before wondering off to the kitchen.

 

+

 

It took three days after the paperwork had been submitted before Liam was finally sent emails alongside Zayn’s. And, well the first one he received was a dozy.

“Shit,” he swore under his breath, eyes scanning over the information.

“What?” Louis asked, looking up from where he was tying his laces.

“Nothing,” Liam said quickly, shoving his phone back into his locker. “Just a, ah, new project deadline.”

“Yeah?” Louis asked distantly, trying to shove his training bag into his locker without it forcing anything else back. “When’s it due?”

Liam ran a hand over his face, letting out a breath. “Tonight.”

“Fuck,” Louis said sympathetically. “I’d offer to help, but your course makes no sense to me.”

“It’s nothing you can help with,” Liam said, waving his hand dismissively. He gave Louis a hand, holding the door close while Louis put the lock on it. “You think Cowell’ll give us an easy training for once?”

“Do you think it’ll rain chocolate for once?” Louis deadpanned.

“Point taken.”

 

+

 

“Have a good one, Payno,” Louis said, slapping Liam’s shoulders as he walked past him down the hall. “See you for gym tomorrow.”

“Later,” Liam called out after him before opening the door. He flicked his wet hair out of his face, squinting as a small droplet ran over his eye. Suddenly Zayn was there, looking panicked.

“Did you get the email?” Zayn asked, crossing his arms.

Liam swallowed anxiously. “Yeah.”

Zayn took a while to speak next. He was tugging at his clothes, staring at the floor and seemingly unable to communicate what he was feeling. Liam understood that – currently his mind was a whirlwind, panic and anticipation colliding furiously in the centre of his mind. Zayn, however, looked terrified. “I don’t want to have sex with you yet,” he said, surging forward slightly before catching himself. “I’m not ready to- like- I’m not even sure how I’d want to do it, like, which way, with, who takes it and stuff-“

“Zayn, it’s okay,” Liam said. For once he felt slightly in control, recognising the fact that he’d have to guide Zayn here. “We don’t have to do that.”

“But then we won’t get paid,” Zayn reminded him.

“We can do other stuff,” Liam told him.

“Like what?”

Liam started blushing immediately. His gaze fell to the floor, shoe scuffing the floor distractingly. “Like, other stuff. Other things.”

“Liam,” Zayn said, stepping forward to place his hands on Zayn’s shoulders. “We are literally about to do a porno together. We need to be able to talk about these things.”

Liam nodded, swallowing nervously. “Like, um, blowjobs. Stuff like that.”

Zayn grinned then, patting Liam’s shoulder playfully. “Look at you, Leeyum, demanding I give you head.”

“I wasn’t-“

“I know,” Zayn told him, shaking his head in amusement. “But it’s either I make jokes or I freak out, so. Now, let’s get this show on the road.”

Liam’s stomach seemed to fall through him a few inches, a new wave of fear running through him. “Now?”

“It needs to be sent through by midnight,” Zayn said, checking the clock. “We’ve only got a bit over three hours ‘till then.”

“Fair enough,” Liam said. He stood in front of the door aimlessly, not sure where to go from there. He watched as Zayn grabbed his laptop, already homing an intimidating looking web camera. He checked to make sure it was charged before walking towards his room. He stopped suddenly, looking over at Liam. “Coming?”

After a beat, Liam nodded jerkily. Fuck, he was about to have sex with his best friend. With _Zayn_. This is the kind of stuff his dreams were made of, picturing him and Zayn doing this sort of stuff. And now- and now it was going to happen. Fuck, it was actually happening.

“Leeyum,” Zayn called out from his bedroom. A spike of something – adrenaline, anticipation, arousal, terror – pinched Liam’s stomach, sending him scrambling towards the room. He found Zayn propping the laptop on his desk, angling the screen so as to make sure the camera could view the whole bed. “Do you think we should already be naked before I turn it on? Or just start it before?”

“Shouldn’t we discuss it first?” Liam wondered. “Like have a play-by-play run down of what’s going to happen?”

“Nah,” Zayn said. “I’d rather it happen organically. Like we really are two new boyfriends experiencing each other for the first time, or whatever.”

Even though he had said it dramatically, those words did something to Liam. They had him stripping off his jumper, kicking off his shoes a little too hastily. Liam wasn’t sure whether he was excited to get started or just wanting to get it over with. Either way, he was more or less ready to go.

Zayn smiled at him over his shoulder, taking a deep breath. “I’m gonna press play in three… two…”

He clicked the button. Liam was expecting something to happen then, some sort of switch, but the situation continued to be just as awkward and tense. Zayn turned around, eyes only able to lock with Liam’s for a few seconds at a time. He walked towards Liam slowly, grabbing Liam’s shoulders hesitantly. There was a question in his eyes, giving room for Liam to say no. Liam just smiled slightly, meeting Zayn halfway and pressing their lips together.

It was different than the last time, less brief and more like diving into the deep end. Liam breathed shakily, feeling how the buzz in his ears reflected the tingle on his lip. Zayn tasted like soda, a sweet flavour lingering on his lips. Liam couldn’t help but run his tongue along them. He let out a small sound when Zayn opened his mouth to deepen the kiss, one that he’d be embarrassed of if it didn’t cause Zayn to tighten his grip. Liam all but surged into it, then, albeit blindly. He curled his arms around Zayn’s waist, pulling them flush together while licked into Zayn’s mouth. Their tongues curled together, fighting for dominance, one which Zayn let Liam win after only a few moments.

Liam shifted his hands so they were grabbing Zayn’s hips instead. He changed the angle in which they were kissing, deepening it further, before he gently brought his groin closer to Zayn’s. He felt like a teenager again, trying to navigate the both of them through the unknown, not sure what Zayn likes and how he should go about things. He pushed forward, making small circles with his hips that became gradually more confident as Zayn started to respond. The boy in question was letting out small gasps, his breath hitching with every few swivels of Liam’s hips.

Liam became more determined then. His pace quickened, pushing their hips together relentlessly, cocks rubbing through too many layers of clothing. His breath became heavier, their kiss becoming messy. Liam’s grip on Zayn’s hips tightened, the thought of leaving bruises all too tempting.

Liam used his grip around Zayn to turn them towards the bed. Their lips lost contact for a moment while Liam laid Zayn down, careful to not completely drop him. He kissed the boy once more, quickly, before standing up enough to pull his shirt off. When the material was off his face he found that Zayn had sat up, now also shirtless and much closer to him than he was before. His hands reached out to grab the waist of Liam’s training shorts, but his eyes were on his face.

“Can I…” he trailed off, biting his lip.

Liam thought he might faint. “Yeah,” he choked out, knees feeling a little weak.

Zayn’s fingers curled around the waistband. He leant forward, kissing Liam’s hip, softly, sucking a mark into it before switching to the other one. His tongue flicked out to soothe Liam’s skin after every hickey, small licks following the bones of his hip. Liam suppressed the noises his mouth was threatening to release. His task was made more difficult when Zayn bit him gently along the v of his hips, chuckling when Liam shivered in result.

“Talk me through it?” Zayn asked him, looking way too innocent as he pulled Liam’s shorts and briefs down in one quick movement.

Liam didn’t trust his voice to answer, but Zayn had become distracted anyway. His eyes were fixed on Liam’s dick, eyes bulging slightly, tongue running over his bottom lip. Liam blushed under his scrutiny, almost unnerved by the amount of focus present on Zayn’s face.

“Liam,” Zayn muttered. He looked up through his lashes.

Liam’s breath got caught in his throat. “Yeah?”

“You need to tell me what to do, babe,” he said softly.

“O-okay,” Liam stammered. He was blushing furiously now, knowing exactly how stupid he was going to sound. But Zayn was looking up at him, eyes dark and willing, and it was now or never. “Just suck on the t-tip,” Liam said, his chest now burning in embarrassment. “J-just get used to it, yeah?”

Zayn nodded, eyes dropping down to Liam’s dick again. He grabbed it gently, holding it steady as he learnt forward. Liam held his breath, letting out a shuddering puff of air when Zayn’s lips wrapped around the head. His mouth was warm, wet – inexperienced but eager, tongue running gently over the slit. He suckled softly, soon looking back up at Liam, waiting.

“Now j-just…” Liam trailed off, struggling to focus with Zayn looking like that: all innocent and patient. He swallowed thickly. “Just go down as far as you can, nice and s-s-slow.”

Zayn blinked patiently, a little nod as he went down a little further, spread his lips a little wider. His hand slid up and down Liam’s dick a little as he took him down, causing Liam to let out a little noise. Zayn did it again, a little firmer, squeezing his palm over a thick vein running up the length of Liam’s cock while his lips went further, further. He bobbed his head a few times, seeming to grow in enthusiasm as his spit made the glide a little smoother. Liam’s knees shaked as he did, a low sound escaping his mouth. Zayn lowered his head further, not stopping until the head of Liam’s dick pushed at the back of his throat. Liam moaned loudly, hips snapping forward in surprise. Zayn choked a little in surprise, pulling off with an obscene noise.

“Sorry,” Liam told him, cradling his face.

“’s okay,” Zayn told him, smiling a little. He leant into Liam’s hand, apparently taking a breather while Liam watched him softly. It was only for a moment, though, before Zayn was going back down on him again.

This time there was more purpose. Zayn bobbed his head with intent, sucking on the way up while one of his hands pushed keenly on the bulge in his own pants. Liam started breathing heavier, gasping with every movement Zayn made, legs shaking so wildly he thought he might collapse. The familiar tension began to build in his abdomen, warm and enticing, tightening all his muscles.

“Faster, babe,” Liam said, hand moving from Zayn’s jaw to his hair, tugging lightly so he could anchor himself. Zayn complied, starting to focus less on technique and more on simply getting Liam off. His mouth was so wet, so warm… Liam’s eyes rolled to the back of his head. The image of Zayn going down on him was too much, now, threatening to have him finished within seconds. “So good, babe.”

Zayn hummed around him, causing Liam’s knees to buckle noticeably. He stumbled a little, causing his cock to fall out of Zayn’s mouth and slide across his cheek. Zayn chased it with his mouth, apparently undisturbed by the trail of saliva and precum creating a smooth trail on his face. Liam suppressed a moan at the sight, only barely managing to straighten himself in time when Zayn’s mouth wrapped around the tip again. The dark haired boy kept his mouth there, sucking insistently while his hand blurred up and down Liam’s length.

The coiling in Liam’s stomach tightened, forcing him to squeeze his eyes shut. “S-so close, Zayn. I…”

He trailed off as the pressure continued to build. Zayn sped up, small noises emitting from in between his lips and around Liam’s dick, tiny gasps of exertion and encouraging moans. Liam opened his eyes briefly, finding Zayn looking right up at him, body shaking from how much effort he was putting into jerking Liam off. Liam grasped Zayn’s hair a little tighter, holding him in place as he tightened, tightened, curled in on himself and released, sparks of white exploding behind his eyes.

Waves of pleasure racked through him, causing his body to pulse sporadically. When he was stable enough to open his eyes he found that Zayn had pulled off just in time, streaks of white splattered down his chin and neck while the boy blinked up at him with a dazed and awed look in his eyes. Liam’s spent cock twitched feebly at the sight.

“Shit,” Liam said.

Zayn’s eyes lit up. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Liam took a small step away, trying to get some breathing room. It was at this point that he saw Zayn was still palming himself insistently, jeans tented uncomfortably. “My turn now, babe.”

Zayn nodded quickly, pushing himself back on the bed with shaking arms. He laid down with his head on the pillow, looking up at Liam with dark, hooded eyes, nerves only visible in how he curled his body slightly away from the camera. Liam smiled softly. His hands trailed after the boy, reaching out to unbuckle his jeans. One knee leaning on the mattress while he worked, he deliberately pressed his fingers into Zayn’s crotch to hear how breathy the boy’s sigh was when he did. He took his boxers and jeans off in one go, knuckle grazing the skin on the inside of his thigh as he tugged off the offending material.

Zayn widened his legs a little, eyes intense while he watched Liam’s looming body. “How do you want me?”

 _Keep your cool, Payne, don’t let him know how hot that sounded._ “E-exactly as you are, babe.”

“Okay,” Zayn said softly. Liam watched him for a moment, suddenly nervous again. This was his chance to impress Zayn, show him what he’s got – something he’s been wanting to do for God knows how long. He just really, really didn’t want to screw this up.

He knelt onto the bed, crawling forward until his head was hovering just over Zayn’s hips. Zayn’s cock rested fatly against his stomach, an angry red than had Zayn twitching in need. Liam could see how the boy’s fingers curled around the sheets, forcing himself to not give in to the need. Liam learnt down to kiss his cock softly, just once, shivering when Zayn stuttered out a moan. He turned his focus to Zayn’s hips, enthralled by the black heart tattooed there, block colour contrasting starkly with Zayn’s pale brown hips. He kissed there gently, too, swirling his tongue along the ink while Zayn squirmed a little beneath him.

“C’mon, Li,” Zayn sighed out. “I n-need-”

“Shh,” Liam cooed, head drifting lower. He left a trail of kisses, working his way down Zayn’s thighs. He splayed his hands over the pale skin, pushing Zayn’s legs a little wider for better access. Pale skin filled his sight enticingly, just begging to be marked. He wasted no time, leaning down to suck a mark on the smooth skin a few inches from Zayn’s crotch, the spot where Zayn’s thighs rub together when he walks. He nipped the blooming bruise gently, tongue smoothing over the area before he moved on, just slightly closer to Zayn’s untouched dick.

Zayn squirmed more, keening softly. His thighs threatened to squeeze Liam’s head in, legs shaking with the effort of not giving in. “L-Liam…”

“Soon, baby,” Liam assured him, looking up at the boy’s fluttering eyes while he sucked a little harder on the skin below his mouth blindly. His lips drifted further, biting at the crease where Zayn’s leg ends and his crotch begins. Zayn moaned loudly, feet planting firmly into the mattress while his back arched. Liam’s dick jumped a little in interest, too sensitive to do anything but intrigued nonetheless.

Liam finally moved his attention to Zayn’s dick, licking a long stripe from the base to the tip, drawing a long shuddering sigh from the boy beneath him. Liam decided that Zayn had waited long enough, cock now an angry purple, chest flushed from arousal. So, looking Zayn dead in the eyes, he grabbed Zayn’s dick and swallowed him right down to the base.

“F-fuck,” Zayn all but shouted when his head caught at the back on Liam’s throat. Liam held his hips down when they thrusted up, bobbing twice before taking Zayn further until his nose was buried in coarse hair. “Y-you-”

Liam lifted his head off of Zayn’s dick with a loud ‘pop’. “Yeah?”

Zayn visibly swallowed, eyes wide in awe. “No gag reflex?”

Liam shook his head, a little bashful. Zayn’s head collapsed back down onto the pillow. Liam got back to work.

He swallowed Zayn all the way back down, fingers pressing firmly into Zayn’s hips when they shuddered beneath him. He held his position for a moment, before lifting his chin to bob his head a few times and then repeating the motion. When Zayn seemed to have his body under control Liam lifted a hand off of his hip to roll Zayn’s balls between his fingers, causing the boy to mumble incoherently. He started bobbing again, quickly, letting Zayn thrust up a little. The boy moaned below him, a drawn out groan that had Liam grinding slightly into the mattress. Zayn seemed intent on controlling himself, though, letting Liam take the lead and apparently trying to suppress his own thrusting.

Liam decided to store this information for later use and instead concentrate and getting Zayn off as quickly as possible. He pulled off slightly to suck at the tip, hollowing his cheeks as he went down again, drawing out a soft mewl from the boy below him. Zayn’s hands scrambled across the sheets, feet losing their purchase and sliding out beneath him as he whimpered. Liam reached out to pin one of Zayn’s hands down, the other tightly fisting Liam’s short hair. His feet continued to scramble around Liam, only stopped when he pushed against Zayn’s hip more firmly. The other boy cried out as Liam started bobbing again, properly with more intent, taking care to suck firmly on the way up.

Zayn shook beneath him, loud moans turning into barely-there sounds as his abdomen began to coil and cave in on itself. “I’m gonna- I’m gonna-”

Zayn came with a silent cry, back arching and lips forming a silent ‘o’. Liam’s mouth flooded with bitter liquid from not pulling off in time, nowhere to go until Liam started swallowing. Some dribbled out of the corner of his mouth and down his chin, starting to slide down his neck as Zayn’s dick kept pulsing with cum. Zayn shuddered sporadically, fingers tightening almost painfully in Liam’s hair as he tried to calm himself down. Liam only pulled off once his grip loosened, Zayn visibly turning boneless beneath him. Liam kissed his thighs again, open mouthed and messy, before he wiped his face with the back of his hand and knelt up to assess Zayn.

The boy stared up at him, jaw slack and limbs lying flat across the mattress. He ducked down, waiting for a tiny nod of consent before he kissed Zayn again, slowly, a means to anchor them both as they calmed down. Soon the kisses became less drawn out and more like pecks, lips kissing corners of mouths and jaws as exhaustion began to take over.

Liam shakily slid off the bed, cataloguing Zayn’s protesting whine from the movement. He fumbled with the web cam for a moment, an uncontrollably large smile on his face when he saw Zayn watching him through the live feed shown on the screen. He finally shut the camera off, quickly sending it off via Zayn’s email. When he turned back around, reality settled in.

What does he do now? Zayn was just lying there, eyes already closed and apparently perfectly content to remain motionless for the time being. There was enough space next to him for Liam to claim, but he wasn’t sure if that was a deliberate move by Zayn or not. He stood there awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as it became blindingly obvious that the sex wasn’t the hard part, it was the return to their regular boundaries.

So Liam slid his boxers back on and threw all their clothes into Zayn’s laundry basket, trying not to look so unsure when Zayn looked up to watch him. “I’m gonna get something to eat,” Liam said, surprised by how gravelly his voice came out as. “You want anything?”

Zayn just shook his head, closing his eyes again. Liam watched his feet as he left the room.

 

+

 

“You look weird,” Louis commented when Liam stumbled into the kitchen the next morning, eyes bleary and yawning almost non-stop.

“I’ve been awake for fifteen seconds,” Liam told him. “How did you even get in here? I locked the door last night.”

Louis didn’t answer, like usual. Instead he was assessing Liam, eyes raking up and down his body. Liam thanked all kinds of deities that he had put a shirt on this morning, Louis now unable to see the hickies and say shit about it.

Still, Louis’ eyes widened in glee.

“You got laid last night,” he said.

Liam blanched. “I did not.”

“Who was it, huh?” Louis barrelled on, leaning forward to the point he was almost falling off the counter top. “That guy that always comes and watches training so he can stare you down? Or… or what’s his name, Michael - the guy from your class!”

“There is no one called Michael in any of my classes,” Liam answered. “And no, none of them. I didn’t have sex.”

“Yes you did, Payno, you look all loose and shit,” Louis told him. He clasped his hands together gleefully. “At least tell me the gender – guy, girl, other?”

“I didn’t have sex,” Liam insisted. “Just, um, a really good night’s sleep.”

“Bullshit,” Louis dismissed. Suddenly he froze, looking around slyly. “Which room is Zayn currently in, exactly?”

Liam moved forward to shove at Louis’ shoulder on his way to the fridge, burying his head amongst condiments to hide his blush. “In his own room, asshole,” Liam told him. “Don’t be an idiot.”

“It was a reasonable guess,” Louis huffed.

Liam turned to give him a flat look. “Not going to happen, Louis.”

He pulled out a small jar of jam, deciding he was too exhausted to make more than toast. Besides, he was really craving the sweet spread.

“Liam,” Louis said a few moments later, when Liam was having his first bite. “Are you aware that you always go straight for the jam after you’ve had sex?”

Liam choked on the bread, dropping it onto the plate. “What?” he wheezed.

Louis grinned. “Well, well, well-”

“Liam?” Zayn called. Liam looked past Louis’ head to find the boy standing in his bedroom doorway, a blanket wrapped around him.

“Yeah?”

“Can you tell Louis to either shut up or fuck off?” Zayn asked sweetly, batting his lashes. “I am very tired and things get broken when I am very tired, like Louis’ oesophagus.”

“Excuse me,” Louis squawked indignantly.

“Will do,” Liam told him. He held up his toast. “Jam?”

“Nah, thanks,” Zayn said. “Besides, you probably want it after your night.”

Liam’s jaw dropped in shock, eyes narrowing as the boy disappeared back into his room. The little shit did it on purpose, now leaving him with fucking Louis Tomlinson who looked like a kid on Christmas morning. Liam pointed at Louis, silencing his inevitable screech of questions. “No,” he said firmly.

“So Zayn knows, huh?” Louis said after a moment. Liam allowed the question, figuring it could be worse.

“Apparently,” he said.

Louis cocked his head to the side. “So is this some sort of jealousy thing?”

“Shut up, Lou,” Liam said flatly. “Why are you even here?”

“Bored,” Louis said, dramatically slumping into one of the counter seats and splaying out across the granite. “Figured you two might be interesting.”

“Nah, we’re all boring ‘round here,” Liam said, fiddling with the hem of his shirt nervously. “Boring, boring, boring.”

 _Aside from the porn_ , Liam thought.

That cheered him up, actually: here he was, Liam James Payne, twenty years old, with the absolute nosiest friends in the entire world, and Louis Tomlinson did not know he was a porn star (or is he really a star, if the video hasn’t even been uploaded yet? Is he a porn amateur? Whatever).

He smirked a little as he downed the rest of his breakfast and cleaned up, a new bounce in his step.

“What’s got you all chipper all of a sudden?” Louis asked lewdly. “A good blowie?”

Liam laughed a little, shaking his head in amusement. “I’ve got to go to class soon, so I can’t help entertain you. Maybe ask Zayn, he’s good until 3.”

“I’m not going near Malik for a few hours,” Louis said, shuddering. “No man should ever have to wake that monster of a prick up.”

“He’s fine when I wake him up,” Liam pointed out.

“That’s because he likes _your_ monster of a prick,” Louis told him.

Liam pointed to the front door as he walked back to his room. “Goodbye, Louis.”

 

+

 

His classes seemed to go relatively quickly, maybe because of his chipper mood. It had settled in at some point during his first class that he had, in fact, given Zayn Malik a blowjob. From that point onwards he couldn’t stop grinning and blushing, getting weird looks from those sitting around him. But who could blame him? Last night had been amazing, even if it was only to receive a paycheck. He knew it wasn’t real, knew that it didn’t change anything between them, but still. The sounds Zayn was making echoed in his head, those breathy gasps and mewls of pleasure, moans and groans and swears escaping his lips. It was enough that by the time he got back to his apartment all he wanted to do was have a shower and quietly take care of himself.

What he wasn’t anticipating, however, was finding the Russian kid sitting on the couch, eating a bowl of cereal.

“’lo,” Harry croaked, waving a little.

“Hi,” Liam said slowly. He looked around the immediate area, finding no one else. “Is Zayn here?”

“In the sho’er,” Harry told him.

Liam listened, hearing a rustling. “You sure?”

That’s when Zayn appeared from his bedroom, using a towel to dry his hair. “Just got back,” he said. He draped the towel over his shoulder, turning to Harry. “Ready to go in a minute?”

“Da,” Harry exclaimed, jumping off the couch. He walked quickly past Liam to rinse out his bowl in the sink, apparently not acknowledging Liam’s unimpressed vibes. Zayn did, however, and raised an eyebrow at him.

 _“What?”_ he mouthed.

Liam just forced a smile and shrugged. It wasn’t his place to get all jealous, he was only the fuck buddy (fuck associate? Business fuckers? Christ).

“I’ll just fix up my hair,” Zayn said slowly, backing into their small bathroom. Liam watched him go. Harry watched Liam.

“Erm, hello,” Liam greeted again. The curly haired boy’s smile deepened. He leaned forward, touching Liam’s hair curiously.

“It _is_ very soft,” Harry said, voice awed.

“What?” Liam asked.

“Time to go,” Zayn said. His hair hadn't been styled, not even a little bit. He looked eager to leave, though, glancing nervously between Liam and Harry. Liam took a small step away.

“Where are you guys off to?” he asked.

“Art show,” Zayn said, quickly grabbing his keys and heading for the door. “A few friends are showcasing.”

“Cool,” Liam said dumbly.

Harry nodded, as if Liam’s weak praise was something profound. “It is. Zayn thinks it is cool-”

“C’mon, Hazza,” Zayn cut him off, grabbing his hand and pulling him out the door. Harry smiled blindingly up at him. Zayn looked up at Liam. “I won’t be home for dinner,” Zayn told him. “Don’t wait up.”

“Okay,” Liam said, standing awkwardly in the kitchen for a few moments after the door closed. _So that was the type of guy Zayn liked_. Mood gone, Liam decided he wanted to go to the gym.

 

+

 

The video was posted the next morning. Liam knew, because the company made a point of emailing him to check it out and go over the notes they had for improvement. Liam had clicked the link open, blushing practically non-stop as he watched the black and white movie, wincing in embarrassment as he made weird noises and stumbled in his boxers and awkwardly tried to dirty talk. Then he watched Zayn, fucking gorgeous Zayn, looking like a pro as he responded to everything Liam gave him. Liam became enthralled, watching how they worked with each other; pale skin on darker tones, hands grabbing at each other, mouths latched. When he heard the rattling of Zayn’s key outside, Liam quickly slammed his laptop shut and bolted for his bedroom.

 

+

 

“Excited?” Zayn asked him the next night, a box of pizza on his lap.

“For what?” Liam asked as he stole another piece, careful not to drip any of the cheese onto Zayn’s sweatpants.

“Your game on Sunday,” Zayn answered, mouth full.

“I have a game every Sunday,” Liam said slowly, confused.

Zayn shrugged. “I know. Just thought you might be.”

Liam watched him strangely for a moment, beyond confused. “What’s got you all frazzled.”

Zayn didn’t answer for a while, just stared down at his slice of pizza with an odd look on his face. “The, uh,” he began, clearing his throat. “The video was posted.”

“Really?” Liam asked with a (hopefully) straight face. “When?”

“This morning, I think,” Zayn said, still not looking at Liam. “And so the people emailed back.”

Liam’s stomach dropped. “Yeah?”

“They said, uh, that it’s doing well,” Zayn said. He looked up, only able to meet Liam’s eyes briefly before he focussed on something behind him. “Like, really well.”

“Oh,” Liam said.

“So they want to capitalise, or whatever, and get another video out quickly,” Zayn continued.

“Oh,” Liam said again.

“And they said that we could do whatever for this next one, but after that they’re going to start giving us kind of prompts,” Zayn finished.

Liam took a deep breath, struggling to process the information. Zayn looked like he was struggling, too. “What do you think?”

“Think about what?”

“Like, all of it,” Liam clarified. “Do you still want to do it, now that it’s, like, official?”

Zayn shrugged again, eyes dropping back to his pizza. “Might as well.”

Liam frowned at that. He dropped his half-eaten slice of pizza back into the box, wiping his hands and watching Zayn seriously. “Tell me what’s actually on your mind, Zayn.”

Zayn dropped his pizza, too, placing the box on the ground. He looked over at Liam, a small smile on his face. “I sought of liked it.”

A million emotions and questioned past through Liam’s mind, and he decided a joke was the best course of action. “I was that good, huh?”

Zayn didn’t laugh. He looked down again, fingers wringing nervously. “No, I, uh. I watched the video. I liked watching the video.”

Liam froze a little. He swallowed thickly, watching a light blush spread across Zayn’s caramel cheeks. “How did it- how did it look?”

“Good,” Zayn said, clearing his throat. “There was none of that funky music, though.”

“Well, shit,” Liam said dramatically, smacking his knee. “What’s even the point then?”

“I’m going to download that music and turn it into my ringtone for you,” Zayn laughed, relaxing into the couch a bit more. “Bow-chikka-wow-wow,” he sang, almost falling off the couch laughing when Liam kicked at him.

“In all seriousness, though,” Liam said. “You’re still okay with all this?”

“Like I said: might as well,” Zayn answered. “None of our close friends or family are gay, so there’s not much of chance anyone we know will stumble upon it. And it’s all… interesting.”

“Interesting how?” Liam asked.

“I dunno,” Zayn said. “Like, new experiences and all that.”

Liam wasn’t sure whether he liked being referred to as ‘new experiences’, but figured beggars can’t be choosers. “So when’s the next video due?”

“They want it pretty soon,” Zayn told him. “But I reckon we’ve got a few days.”

“Alright,” Liam nodded. He was sort of impatient to get his hands on Zayn again, but knew he shouldn’t push his luck. “Just tell me when you want to.”

“Why do I have to make that decision?” Zayn asked, a glint of humour in his eyes. “Are you too shy to initiate our pornos, Leeyum?”

“Shove off,” Liam laughed, blushing profusely as he buried his head in one of the couch pillows. There was a silence then, as brief humour faded into the reality of the situation. It was so weird to just openly talk about all this stuff, about sex and pornography, and yet it all be so awkward on Liam’s part.

“I don’t like how uncomfortable you are about it,” Zayn said, like he could read Liam’s mind. “Like I’m sort of getting the vibe that you don’t actually want to do this stuff – which is fine, but you have to tell me.”

“No, I’m fine,” Liam said quickly, shaking his head. He licked his lips, wondering how to word himself. “It’s just that, like, remember how you were wondering about what it would be like to fall into place afterwards, you know? Like going from friends to… more, then back to friends again?”

“Yeah,” Zayn said slowly.

“Well, I guess I just find the bits in between a bit awkward,” Liam continued. “Like just finding the boundaries again so neither of us over-step.”

Zayn considered this, nodding after a moment. “I get that,” he said. “How we go from that level of contact to practically nothing.”

“Yeah,” Liam said.

Zayn grabbed his pizza again, taking a bite. “I guess it’s just something we’ll get used to.”

And that was that, apparently.

 

+

 

Saturday morning trainings were the worst, in Liam’s opinion. The day before the game, so everyone’s revved up with anticipation, but it’s also the time when Coach Cowell is most panicked and, therefore, pushes the team as far as they can be pushed.

“I’m dying,” Louis gasped out, collapsing next to Liam once they had finished their part in the sprinting drills. “I’m actually dying.”

“I think I’ve already died,” Liam wheeled out. “My body feels like it’s already in the clouds.”

“Mine feels like it’s on fire,” Louis groaned.

“That’s probably because you’re going to Hell,” Liam told him. Louis punched his shoulder weakly – too tired to do anything else, apparently.

“Shall we hit the showers, Payno?” Louis asked him after a moment of catching their breaths.

“I forgot my towel, so I’ll need to swing by my room,” Liam told him, sitting up slowly. “Wanna come?”

“Fine,” Louis said, rolling over to push himself up. “But you’re carrying me up the stairs.”

“I’m not carrying you up the stairs,” Liam said firmly.

Liam did, in fact, have to carry him up the stairs. And to make things worse, they ran into Niall on the way up, and Louis refused to hop off.

“Liam,” Niall said in surprise as he walked down the hallway towards them. “What’re you doing here?”

Liam furrowed his eyebrows quizzically. “I live in this building. Across from you, in fact.”

“No I mean…” Niall trailed off, a light seeming to go on behind his eyes. “Oh, shit.”

“What?” Liam asked, confused.

“Nothing,” Niall said, already starting to duck back down the stairs. “Later, lads!”

“Leprechauns are quite confusing,” Louis said.

Liam snorted, hiking him further up his back. “You weigh a tonne, Lou.”

“I do not,” Louis protested.

“Your ass weighs a hundred pounds by itself,” Liam grunted, ascending the second flight of stairs.

“I’ll have you know that Eleanor is quite fond of my ass,” Louis told him, arms tightening around his neck. “So please don’t drop me on it.”

“Worried the silicon pouches will explode?” Liam asked. He laughed as Louis punched his shoulder, stumbling a little to make Louis let out an inhuman screech. “How is El, by the way?”

“Still not here,” Louis said, and Liam could hear the pout. “Stupid internship taking her to stupid Chicago.”

Liam made a noise of sympathy. “It’s not too bad, is it though? You still talk almost every day, right?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Louis said. “It’s just, like. Um. Can you put me down for a sec?”

Liam did immediately, sensing the change in Louis’ demeanour. Whatever he was about to say was obviously quite important to him.

“Sometimes I just feel… off, though,” Louis said slowly, looking straight ahead as they walked down the hallway. “Like she’s not really my girlfriend- or, actually, just not real. And like-”

Louis cut off as a moan ripped through the silence. They both turned in unison, looking at Liam’s apartment door. Another moan was heard, this time more shaky. He could clearly tell it was Zayn. Liam’s heart fell into his stomach, remembering what Niall said about Saturday mornings. His mouth felt like it was full of bile when he remembered Harry’s smiling face, Niall’s confusion.

Louis put a hand on his shoulder, a quirk of sympathy in his expression. “How ‘bout you come to my apartment, yeah? I’ve got the new Fall Out 4 waiting to be tried out.”

“Okay,” Liam said, wincing as he heard another of Zayn’s whimpers. Louis led him away, uncharacteristically nice the whole way down the hall.

 

+

 

“I’m off,” Liam called, pulling on his second shoe. His bag was already hanging off his shoulders, packed and ready to go.

Zayn poked his head out of his room. “Already? You’ve been home for, like, ten minutes.”

He had done that on purpose, but still. “Yeah, Louis wanted help training his drop kicks.”

“Alright,” Zayn said slowly. “Good luck.”

“Thanks,” Liam said, closing the door. He hovered there for a moment, taking a breath. He knew he couldn’t avoid Zayn forever, but he just needed a day. Just a day.

 

+

 

Zayn all but tackled him when Liam walked through the door, barrelling into him with gangly limbs and sharp edges. “You won!”

“Yeah,” Liam laughed breathlessly, unable to do much while he was still holding all his gear. “How did you know?”

“Everyone’s talking about it,” Zayn said, pulling back. “I still don’t understand why football is so important around here, but still.”

“You’re literally the only person in the entire school who doesn’t like football, so you’re not allowed to speak down on it,” Liam told him with a grin, ducking past him to dump his bag into his room. When he returned, Zayn grabbed his wrist and started pulling him towards his own room. “What’re you doing?”

“Next video,” Zayn said. “We should do it before the adrenaline leaves you.”

Liam is suddenly reminded how much Zayn knows about him. After every game, Liam is jumpy and jittery and unable to stay still, and then after an hour, like clockwork, he just falls asleep without much warning. It used to be hilarious, having Zayn panic as he went from maximum speed to unconscious in three seconds, the boy thinking he’d passed out. “Fair enough,” Liam said.

A new kind of adrenaline settled in then, mixed with anticipation as Zayn kicked the door closed behind them. He released Liam’s hand in favour of turning the camera on, fiddling with his laptop for a few moments before turning around. He must have clicked start, because the next thing Liam knew Zayn was kissing him.

Zayn, apparently, was keen to get the show on the road, almost immediately pushing Liam down onto the bed. Zayn climbed on top of him, one hand planted by his head and the other running over Liam’s chest. The view to Liam’s chest and their lips was completely unobstructed to the camera. Liam remembered one of the points the producers had sent them, telling them to be more aware of the how their bodies were presented to the audience.

Liam’s hands drifted up Zayn’s thighs to his ass, squeezing gently. Zayn made a noise of approval, arching his back a little so that his ass pressed into Liam’s palms. Liam smiled into the kiss, aware of how quickly Zayn was getting into it, how much he wanted _him_. A primal urge was pumping through Liam, a need to be better than Harry, show Zayn he could be better than Harry, make Zayn want him more than Harry.

Liam flipped them, pressing Zayn into the mattress with his hips. Zayn’s gasp transformed into a groan as he did, the smaller boy grinding up against Liam. Liam bit at his chin in appreciation. His hand snaked down to Zayn’s jeans, fingers squeezing at his length through the material. Zayn was well on the way to being fully hard, mewling when Liam ran his knuckles over his still-clothed cock. Liam palmed him through his jeans, applying enough pressure to have Zayn’s fingers curl bitingly into his bicep.

“C’mon,” Zayn hissed out, biting his lip. He was tugging at Liam’s shirt with obvious intention. Liam sat up, kneeling on either side of Zayn’s lap, before grabbing the shirt at the bottom, making a show of peeling it off his skin, still sweating slightly from the game. The shirt hadn’t even hit the floor before Zayn’s hands were on him, crawling up his chest and pressing wonderingly into his abs. He looked almost awed, fixated on the expanse of skin in front of him, leaning forward to run a wet tongue over Liam’s chest. Liam sighed out brokenly in response. His hand came up to cradle the back of Zayn’s neck when the boy shifted to suck on one of his nipples, long mewls escaping his lips at the feeling.

“You too,” Liam panted, fisting Zayn’s shirt in his hands. Zayn was quick to comply, almost punching himself in the face with how quickly he pulled off the offending material.

Liam pressed him into the bed, mouths clashing while he blindingly ran his hands over Zayn’s skin. It was all so smooth beneath his fingers, like expensive porcelain that he didn’t deserve to touch. He tried to rest as much weight as he could on his knees while both hands crawled up Zayn’s skin, stroking over pert nipples and stuttering over skin as Zayn made a low noise in his throat. The smaller boy reached between them, lips never leaving his as Liam felt the boy’s zipper being undone and Liam’s shorts pulled down over the bulge of his erection.

Liam started grinding against him again, movement made smoother by his open pants. He could feel the hard length of Zayn beneath him, the warmth of him, the feel of their cocks sliding against one another with only one layer of thin material between them.

Hang on.

Liam looked down, finding Zayn’s bare cock poking out of his jeans. “No underwear?”

Zayn shook his head, looking embarrassed. “Wanted you as soon as possible.”

Liam shuddered at that, at the realisation that Zayn must have planned this beforehand. Probably planed it a few days ago, when he was being all shifty and asking if Liam was excited by the game. Liam wrapped a hand around the boy’s length in appreciation.

“Oh, fuck,” Zayn gasped when Liam began to slide his dry hand up and down his prick, nothing but sweat to ease the glide. Liam was conflicted between watching how the head of Zayn’s dick appeared and disappeared into his fist, and watching Zayn’s face, eyes screwed shut and mouth parted in pleasure. Both sights were beautiful, but Liam knew it’d look weird to just be staring at Zayn the entire time, so he got to work.

He leant down to suck bruises into Zayn’s skin as he pulled the boy’s jeans off. They were so tight that Liam had to pull away and physically tug on them, making Zayn puff out a short laugh. Liam just kissed his ankle once they were finally off before ducking back down, sucking the head of Zayn’s cock into his mouth. Zayn let out a choked noise, legs scrambling on either side of Liam’s torso when he licked at the slit.

“Fuck, Li, need to- to…” he trailed off, apparently lost in the motion of Liam’s tongue.

Liam pulled off with an audible noise, licking his lips and still pumping Zayn casually. “Need to what?”

“Suck you off,” Zayn gasped out, squirming under Liam’s attention.

Liam thought about the request for a moment, stuck between wanting to comply and also wanting to make Zayn orgasm. Then, with a grin, he figured out a solution, still pumping Zayn all the while.

“Li, please,” Zayn moaned. “Wanna make you cum.”

Liam released Zayn’s prick and instead moved to the side, and then laid down so his head was at the wrong end of the bed. Zayn peered over at him curiously, a question in his eye. “Sixty-nine?” he whispered, head turned a little away from the camera.

Zayn all but scrambled to climb on top of Liam, eyes wide and anticipatory. He was completely naked, wiry limbs and taut stomach on full display for both Liam and the camera. In fact, as Zayn manoeuvred himself onto his hands and knees, he angled his body towards the laptop, looking at it lewdly for a moment with a flush down his chest, before turning away and finally settling over Liam. That, plus the sight of Zayn’s naked ass hovering over him was enough to have Liam shuddering.

“Ever tried this, babe?” Liam asked, mouthing at the inside of Zayn’s thighs.

Zayn shivered. “N-no,” he said, head hanging between his shoulder blades and eyes closed. “But I think I know h-how.”

“Yeah?” Liam asked distractedly as he wrapped a hand around Zayn’s dick again.

“Yeah,” Zayn echoed, warm hand wrapping around Liam.

Liam guided the tip of Zayn’s cock to his mouth, feeling Zayn hesitate before doing the same. It was like a game of copycat: Liam wrapped his lips around the tip, so did Zayn; Liam hollowed his cheeks and sucked, so did Zayn; Liam swallowed him down-

“Oh, fuck,” Zayn cried out, the head of Liam’s dick slipping out of his mouth for a moment before Zayn was chasing after it, taking Liam as far as he could.

Liam moaned and gurgled around Zayn’s dick, his throat producing noises with nowhere to go. Zayn shuddered, squirming a little. Liam’s hands came up to rest on Zayn’s waist, feeling the boy move as he tried to balance between pushing himself down Liam’s throat and taking Liam’s dick down further. Liam propped his head up a little higher, bend his legs a little more to try and make it easier.

Liam wondered what he looked like, if he came across as in control of himself or if the shake in his thighs gave away exactly how weak Zayn made him. He felt stretched thin, with so much lovely pressure on his cock, but he had to concentrate on making Zayn feel good and thus couldn’t focus on the feeling building in his abdomen.

There was no mistaking the awkwardness that clouded their movements. Neither of them could move without disturbing the other, Liam definitely couldn’t move for risk of choking Zayn. Spit was smeared all around Liam’s mouth, and he could feel tears starting to spill over his eyes from the effort of keeping his jaw open. Above him, Zayn was shaking with effort. Liam could feel him vibrating, panting with his dick still in his mouth.

Carefully, Liam pulled Zayn’s cock from his mouth, making sure to avoid teeth. “Zayn,” he said, voice rough in his own ears. Zayn kept going. “Zayn, babe. Want you to fuck my face.”

Zayn stilled at that, arching his body so he could look down the length of Liam’s body until their eyes met. “You sure?”

“Mmhmm,” Liam hummed, fixated on how long and lean Zayn looked from this angle. Neck craned, stomach arched awkwardly, hair falling across his face, sweat faintly soaking his skin… Zayn was so beautiful, and Liam couldn’t believe he got to see him like this.

Well, him and everyone who viewed the video.

Not wanting Zayn to hesitate, Liam sucked the man’s cock back into his mouth to take him as far as he could. Zayn cried out in surprise, falling onto his elbows on either side of Liam’s legs. Liam laid his head all the way back, got himself comfortable, and then tapped Zayn’s leg as if to say _what are you waiting for?_

Hesitantly, as though he thought Liam might break, Zayn lowered his hips slowly down, a rigid control taking over his body. Liam couldn’t comfortably see his face any more, but figured that his features were contorted into the sort of concentration one possesses when trying to hold themselves back.

Liam didn’t want Zayn to hold back. He wanted Zayn to _ruin_ him.

After a few more shallow thrusts, met with encouraging hums from Liam, Zayn seemed to get the idea a bit more. His legs became less stiff on either side of Liam’s head (which he was thankful for because, you know, he didn’t fancy much getting his skull crushed with Zayn’s dick still wedged down his throat), his cock sunk a little lower into Liam’s eager mouth, and he let out a long, breathy sigh that seemed to match Liam’s relief when the dark haired boy started to really get into it.

Liam could feel the weight of Zayn on his tongue and the thickness of his cock in his throat. Tears were pooling in his eyes, threatening to spill over when Zayn’s hips stuttered forward involuntarily. They definitely spilt over when Zayn bottomed out.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Zayn moaned when Liam swallowed around him, cheeks hollowing and sucking on the out strokes.

But he still wasn’t getting the idea.

Liam’s hands snaked their way back to Zayn’s hips from where they’d fallen by his sides, fingers digging into soft skin and guiding Zayn down again before pulling him back up. Liam tried his best to make Zayn understand what face fucking _really_ is, using his leverage on the smaller man to bounce him in and out of Liam’s throat. It hurt like fuck when Liam accidentally let go to early and had Zayn ram into his oesophagus, but Zayn finally, _finally_ began to trust himself.

His thrusts were no longer shallow, or slow, or careful. There was no more hesitance or uncertainty, no rhythm to make the whole thing appear choreographed or predictable. No, there was just Zayn and Liam, the former fucking his mouth like his life depended on it, long mewls so fucking loud in the quiet apartment. Liam fucking loved it.

In fact, he was becoming achingly hard. Between the sounds Zayn was making and the visual he received every time he opened his eyes, Liam was almost vibrating with arousal, dick throbbing red and angry somewhere he couldn’t see but could definitely feel. Zayn was still whining, fucking himself down and into Liam, Liam’s name on his lips like a prayer. It was by far the hottest thing Liam had ever heard. He never wanted it to stop.

“I’m gonna cum, Li,” Zayn gasped out. His body was shaking above Liam, barely holding up. He tried to pull off, but Liam held him firmly in place, not letting his dick completely leave his mouth. “Li, please, I can’t hold on any longer, I’m gonna-“

Liam hollowed his cheeks again, bobbing his head when Zayn stopped. The man above him swore in responses, didn’t stop swearing until warm, bitter liquid was pooling into Liam’s mouth, making him gag and choke.

Liam didn’t give him a moment to relax like last time – he was too turned on, too close to the edge. Liam utilized Zayn’s weak state to flip the two, crawling up the length of Zayn’s body, groaning at the sight of Zayn’s post-orgasmic face: mouth slack, eyes glossy and fluttering, ears pink with exhaustion. Liam was almost unconsciously beating himself off, hand blurring over his prick as he straddled Zayn’s chest. His orgasm was ripped from him in hardly any time at all. Thick splashes of white released onto Zayn’s collar bones, his neck, his chin and mouth. Liam’s hips jerked in an aftershock and a stripe of cum shot across Zayn’s eyelid and down his cheek. By the time Liam had finished, Zayn was a beautiful mess.

“ _Shit_ ,” Liam groaned out, collapsing next to the other man. Zayn turned his head to say something, maybe, but Liam just groaned again. “You turn off the camera. Show off your face like that, _fuck_.”

Zayn grinned bashfully, sliding out of bed. Liam kept his eyes closed, if only because he needed time to recuperate and the image of Zayn’s naked body definitely wouldn’t help.

(He watched the tape later, though, when Zayn had gone for a midnight shower and the apartment was silent. He skimmed through, desperately wanting to watch how they fit together before the clip is edited, but knowing that’s not what he’s looking for. No, he’s looking for the ending, where Zayn swaggers out of bed: plump lower caught between pearly white teeth, face eclipsing into a cheeky grin when he examines himself in the live feed. He looked directly into the camera, a tiny eyebrow raise accompanying his smirk giving hint that he’s enjoying the attention for a little more than what he’s being paid.)


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well. This only took me five months and two days to upload. Rip.
> 
> Uploads will be much, much quicker. Promise.

Liam met Zayn on his first day on campus. When he was moving into the dorm, more specifically.

Liam had been nervous, bottom lip caught between his teeth while his mum tried to convince him that he would have a _lovely_ time at this _lovely_ school that his _lovely_ father was paying for. Liam had been all but completely tuning her out, though, and avoiding eye-contact with all the other boys he passed in the hallway. Everything was loud, was the thing, and not in a blasting-a-good-song type of loud, but in a my-alarm-is-going-off-while-I’m-hungover sort of loud. It made Liam flinch a little, hearing people shouting across the corridor at each other, and cheering as they find out their friends are in the same building (or, fuck, _next door to them_ ) and loudly saying goodbye to their family after properly moving in. Liam hadn’t even started carrying in boxes yet, and didn’t want his mum carrying anything, either, because of her bad back, and he winced thinking about how many trips he’d have to take through these halls just to get his stuff in his room.

To make matters worse, when he opened the door to his dormitory, there were boxes everywhere. On the kitchen bench, the floor, the couch, the TV stand, _everywhere_.

“Oh,” his mum had said. “Your roommate must have beat us in traffic.”

There were three things Liam knew about Zayn at that point: Zayn Malik, age 18, lives in Bradford. Needless to say, he was absolutely shitting himself at the thought of meeting a near stranger. (Liam hadn’t had many friends growing up, and definitely hadn’t lived with anyone other than his family for more than a night’s sleep over. This had been a condition of his father paying for university, though, so Liam was trying to suck it up.)

“ _Take your nose off my keyboard_ ,” Liam heard someone sing quietly. His head snapped in the direction of an open doorway, where a boy was slowly coming into view. “ _What you bothering me for, there’s a-“_

The boy cut himself off when he saw there were other people in the apartment. His cheeks burned.

“Hey,” he said, voice a little stressed with embarrassment.

Liam didn’t answer. How could he? This bloke was one of the most attractive people he’d ever come across – hair in a soft quiff, eyes round and golden coloured, skin tone popping under a cream sweater, and his voice, fuck… Liam was suddenly self-conscious of his own. He didn’t want to speak.

“Hello, dear,” his mum saved him, smile plastered on her face. “I’m Karen, Liam’s mother.”

The boy smiled and nodded politely at her, before his gorgeous eyes fell on Liam’s. “I’m guessing you’re Liam, then?”

Liam nodded jerkily. It took him a moment to realise that Zayn was holding a hand out for him to shake. Liam shivered just the tiniest bit when he accepted the gesture, enthralled by how warm and thin Zayn’s hands were. If Liam remembers anything with absolute clarity from that day, though, it’s how Zayn had turned back to Karen with a charming smile and said: “There’s no way you’re old enough to have a teenage son.”

And that’s how Karen became instantly infatuated with Zayn Malik.

Liam remembers being absolutely in awe of Zayn’s people skills. He was in awe of a lot of things Zayn-related. All in all, he was an eighteen-year-old boy with a crush on his new roommate, and fuck if he wasn’t dying a little on the inside.

 

+

 

Liam didn’t realise someone else was in the apartment until Louis was slamming his bedroom door open and flopping onto the mattress next to him.

“Liam,” he said, low and whiney.

“Yes, Louis?” Liam asked. He continued scrolling on his laptop, eyes flickering distractedly over past projects, looking for something half-decent to continue working on. He was in a _doing_ mood, itching to be productive, even if that meant simply finishing off a mix he started in freshman year.

“Eleanor can’t Skype again,” Louis groaned into Liam’s pillow. “Also, it smells weird. Did you just have a wank?”

“Why can’t El Skype?” Liam asked, ignoring the question aimed at him with a wrinkled nose.

Louis released a long sigh, turning to crane his neck up at Liam. “Says she’s too busy.”

Liam frowned down at him. “And you don’t believe her?”

“I don’t know,” Louis said after a moment, eyes a little dim. “Like, sometimes I tell her I’m busy when I’m not, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she did, too.”

“Why do you that?”

Louis looked thoughtful for a moment, eyelashes fanning over his cheekbones when he looked down to avoid Liam’s gaze. “I don’t know.”

“Lou.”

“It’s just difficult, okay?” Louis told him, a defensive manner in how he curled into himself a little, looking smaller. “It’s hard. Makes me think stupid things.”

“Like what?” Liam pressed gently. He closed his laptop and put it on the floor slowly.

Louis avoided his gaze again. “Nothing.”

The boy sat up suddenly, crossing his legs and looking over at Liam with a sort of whirlwind excitement about him. “Let’s go out tonight.”

Liam frowned at him. Louis’ quick change in attitude would give him a headache if he hadn’t have been expecting it, watching Louis’ mind tick as he actively tried to hide something. “It’s a Monday.”

“So?”

“You have a class first thing tomorrow,” Liam pointed out. “And all the clubs would be dead on a Monday.”

Louis rolled his eyes, like Liam was slow. “We’re not going to a club, geez.”

“We’re not going anywhere,” Liam said firmly. He sat up, eyes becoming level as he frowned at Louis’ smirk. “I’m serious, I’m putting my foot down. We’re not going out.”

They ended up at in a pub not too far off campus, with Liam nursing a lemonade while Louis drank way too much on the other side of the booth. Louis was a rambling mess, talking about Eleanor and his family with the type of drunk excitement that rendered him almost incoherent. Liam was wondering why they’d come here just to get drunk, considering they could have easily just gotten smashed in Louis’ dorm – or even Liam’s, if Zayn didn’t mind (which he wouldn’t).

What was even more confusing was why Louis wanted to get drunk at all. The blue-eyed boy was a partier, definitely, but only when the social occasion arose. There had been very few times that he got drunk for the hell of it, and usually it was to cope with something weighing him down, like when him and El separated for a few days, or when his mum was hospitalised but he couldn’t visit because of exams, or when he’d cried in class and felt like shit for it. He never told Liam why he’d erupted into tears during a quiet theatre lecture, but he knew enough about the boy to know something huge was happening internally.

So Liam was a bit worried, here, because it was starting to seem like something was happening inside of Louis, so far down that he couldn’t tell even his best mate, but close enough to the surface to have him attempting to drown himself with mixed drinks.

This niggly worry, plus Liam’s exhaustion, could both be blamed for his disorientation the next morning.

“What?” Liam mumbles tiredly, voice cracking into a yawn. He’d been awake for not even two minutes, feet only just crossing into the threshold of the kitchen, hands not even near the coffee pot yet. Zayn should have already guessed he wouldn’t be particularly attentive.

Regardless, Zayn sat down heavily onto a bench stool and sighs in mock exasperation. “Liam Payne, have you been listening to me at all?”

“I’ve been listenin’,” Liam slurs quietly. “Just not retainin’ much.”

Zayn shakes his head fondly. He points at the kettle. “Water’s boiled.”

“Thank god,” Liam moans, diving for the kettle. He quickly scoops coffee powder and sugar into a mug haphazardly, barely pouring in milk alongside the water before he was taking large gulps of it. He smiled sheepishly at Zayn as he felt himself liven up a bit. “Morning,” he says with an easy grin.

Zayn rolls his eyes but grins back. “Ready to listen, then?”

Liam nods.

“Okay, so. The company emailed us again, if you didn’t already see,” Zayn begins, opening his laptop on the bench again. “And basically they just sent a couple ideas for our next few videos, because I told them we didn’t want to go all the way yet. That’s okay, right?”

Liam nods again. “Of course.”

“Cool,” Zayn says. “So I know what most of them are, but I’ve already vetted the ones I’m definitely not doing.”

“Which ones?” Liam asks, lips quirking in amusement.

“ _Watersports_ ,” Zayn says, shivering exaggeratedly. “I looked that shit up and like, you’re awesome, but I really don’t want you to pee on me.”

Liam snorted into his mug.

“Also tickling?” Zayn continued. “Like, each to their own, but that would not end up well. I’d punch you in the face.”

“What if I want to be punched in the face?” Liam asked, trying to keep his face straight.

Zayn raised an eyebrow. “Got a pain kink?”

“It’s my last name,” Liam informed him.

Zayn laughed properly at that. Liam had to turn and busy himself with making breakfast because he wasn’t sure exactly how obvious his heart eyes are. He put in enough toast for the two of them in the toaster before turning around, giving him time to school his face.

“So what’s still on the list, then?” he asks.

“Toys, which is incredibly vague,” Zayn says, shrugging. “Paddles-“

“Nope,” Liam says immediately, wincing as he recalls a bad experience. Then he tilts his head at Zayn. “You kept that on your list?”

“And something called rimming,” Zayn continues, ignoring his question. (Liam doesn’t miss the way he bites his lip for a moment.) Zayn looks up then, eyes wide and innocent. “I haven’t had time to look that one up.”

He’s looking at Liam like he’s waiting for something. Liam realises after a moment that he’s asking for Liam’s opinion. The toast pops up like a light bulb. “Er,” Liam says, blushing a little. “It’s, um, it’s pretty good. Like, feels good.”

“Yeah?” Zayn says.

“Yeah,” Liam echoes. “Do you want me to explain, or-“

Zayn shakes his head quickly. “Nah,” he says. “Maybe surprise me? So then my reaction will be more authentic.”

“I don’t know,” Liam says, weighing it up in his mind while he pulled out butter from the fridge. “What if you really hate it?”

“Then we’ll stop filming and delete the clip,” Zayn answers. Liam watches his face carefully, looking for any signs of hesitancy. He doesn’t want Zayn to have to feel like he needs to keep up with Liam, or push himself, or anything. Liam needs the money, yeah, but he’s not going to jeopardise his best mate’s _virginity_ for a few bucks.

But when he found Zayn’s expression free of worry, Liam nodded slowly. “Okay,” he said. “We can do that. But you need to tell me straight away if you don’t like it, yeah?”

“Of course,” Zayn says, waving dismissively.

Liam puts the plate of buttered toast between them. He picks up a piece, eyes flicking over to Zayn’s in amusement. “So paddling, huh?”

“Shut up,” Zayn mumbled good-naturedly, throwing a piece of crust at him.

 

+

 

There’s a bounce in Coach Cowell’s step as the boys line up on the field. Liam looks at Louis warily, unsure whether this means it’s going to be an easy training or something horrible.

“Good news, lads,” Cowell says, grinning at each of them. “In about two months, regardless of our placement in the district competition, Cornerstone College has proposed a big end-of-season match. Considering half of you are seniors, I figured you’d appreciate going out with a bang.”

Liam grinned along with the rest of his team, turning to ruffle Louis’ hair and high-five a team mate on the other side of him. Cornerstone College had been their biggest competition for as long as both campuses existed. The rivalry goes decades back, and is almost as engrained as the sport itself. Even though Liam still has another two years at this school, he knows just as well as everyone else on the team that this match will be one of the biggest ones in their college football careers.

He also knows this means more rigorous training.

“With that said, we need to get started,” Cowell boomed over the top of them, gaining their attention. He stepped out of the way, gesturing to the field in front of them. “Eight suicides, let’s go!”

Liam received one more playful shove from the teammates on either side of them before they all started running.

 

+

 

Liam looks at his schedule for the week. Looks again. Swallows thickly.

“Zayn?” he calls.

“Yeah?” he gets back, voice coming from Zayn’s room.

Liam gets up from the couch, phone still clutched in his hand when he stuck his head through Zayn’s open doorway. “Do you still have a full day tomorrow?”

“Yeah,” Zayn says, putting his book down on his chest, looking up at Liam curiously. “Why?”

Liam shuffled nervously. “Well then, um, tonight’s the only free time we have,” he says. Zayn tilts his head a little, clearly confused. “Before the new video’s due on Saturday.”

Zayn’s eyes widen in recognition. “ _Oh_.”

“Yeah,” Liam says. He can feels his face heating ridiculously. “Do you want to in here, or…?”

“Here’s good,” Zayn says. He sits up, moving the book to his bedside table, more attentive. He grins nervously. “Best do it now in case we have to figure something else out.”

Liam’s heart races a bit more then. _Figure something else out_. Zayn’s putting so much trust into him right now, and Liam can definitely feel the pressure of the situation. He just wants to make sure Zayn’s comfortable and feels good, and doesn’t force himself to do something he doesn’t want to.

Liam nods and steps further into the room, closing the door behind him. He fiddles with the hem of his sweater, not sure whether he should undress beforehand or not. He looks at Zayn, though, and sees the tell-tale signs of his nerves (lip caught between teeth, head ducked slightly) and knows that getting naked so quickly would probably intimidate Zayn more than anything right now.

“Want me to start the cam?” Liam asks when Zayn still doesn’t move. Zayn nods.

Liam wanders over to where Zayn’s laptop is charging on his desk. He sets up the camera, making sure it gives a clear view of the bed, before clicking start. Zayn still hasn’t moved, and doesn’t look like he has much intention to, so Liam goes to him.

Liam sits on the bed in front of Zayn, one foot still on the floor, his other knee touching one of Zayn’s. Zayn keeps his eyes on him but doesn’t move a muscle. He melts a little as Liam reaches up with one hand to cradle his face on the side that won’t obscure the camera’s view. Zayn leans into the touch, expression softening just a little, lashes blinking up at him deliberately and, fuck, Liam wants to kiss him.

Liam leans in slowly, propelled by a charge in the air. He’s struck again by home much trust Zayn’s putting into him, and it makes him nearly breathless, and endlessly awed. He just hopes to god that he doesn’t let Zayn down.

Liam kisses him softly, gently pressing their lips together in a way he’s hoping will ground them both. Zayn lets out a small noise, indecipherable, and then Liam feels thin fingers on his neck. Liam presses forward, deepening the kiss just slightly, giving Zayn the all clear to touch him.

With his eyes closed, Liam gets lost in the feel of Zayn; trailing a hand down and under Zayn’s shirt to feel his taut stomach, sucking gently on Zayn’s bottom lip, nose brushing briefly over Zayn’s barely-there stubble as he pushes a little further. Zayn just releases shaky breaths against Liam’s mouth in between kissing him back, and keeps his hand by Liam’s neck, letting Liam take the lead.

Liam pulls gently at Zayn’s shirt, unwilling to pull away from the heat of Zayn’s mouth but desperate to get rid of the offending material. Zayn wordlessly complies, pulling back barely an inch and raising his arms. Liam pulls the shirt over Zayn’s head, careful not to elbow him in the face, and grins when Zayn’s in his line of sight again. His hair’s in disarray and sticking out adorably, making Zayn look impossibly more _cute_ with his wide Bambi eyes slightly swollen lips. Zayn grins back at him, and it’s like that hesitance disappears.

Liam surges in again, hands on Zayn’s hips when he licks into his mouth. He pushes insistently until Zayn falls back against the bed, pulling Liam down with him like they were bound together by a rope, mouths never separating. Liam shifted so he was hovering over Zayn, legs in between Zayn’s, one arm coming to rest by Zayn’s head for support while the other smoothed down Zayn’s ribs and stomach, feeling the way his muscles jumped.

“This okay?” he whispers, lips muttering against Zayn’s.

“Yeah,” Zayn breathes. He spreads his legs just slightly, letting Liam fall deeper onto him. Liam closes the miniscule space between them.

Zayn’s hands roam down the length of Liam’s back, gently pressing in before sneaking under the fabric of Liam’s sweater, palms flattening against the expanse of his skin. Liam arches his bag a little and moans lowly when Zayn presses his fingers in. He pushes the fabric further up Liam’s back, giving Liam a clear sign that he wants him to take it off, but Liam resists. Instead, he pins Zayn’s wrists to the bed and kisses deeper, licking into his mouth and chasing a taste he can’t define. Zayn keens against his mouth, becoming immediately slack. Liam revels in it, in this control Zayn’s relinquishing. He presses his hips down, grinding harshly, feeling Zayn prick already slightly thickened. Liam rolls his hips filthily, letting out his own moan when he felt the pulls of friction on his cock. But, fuck, it was nothing compared to the sounds Zayn was making – and they weren’t even _doing_ anything yet.

Liam presses one last kiss to Zayn’s mouth before mouthing and tonguing down Zayn’s throat. He mouths over Zayn’s Adam’s apple, feeling it jolt under his touch just as he felt the moan that Zayn emitted. Liam grinned against his neck, lingering for a moment before moving down, further, over Zayn’s collarbone and sternum, over to a pert nipple. He sucked it into his mouth gently, feeling Zayn’s arms jump under his grip, whole body reacting. Liam let out a soft laugh after grazing his teeth over the bud, hearing Zayn’s low whine.

“Liam,” he whined gently. “Liam, please.”

“Shh,” Liam cooed softly. He didn’t know what Zayn was asking for, but he gets the feeling that Zayn didn’t know, either.

He ground down against Zayn’s cock again, now feeling Zayn’s cock hard beneath him, trapped beneath his sweatpants and briefs. Liam’s mouth watered slightly, already imagining how red and wet it was going to be.

Liam moves further down Zayn’s chest, suddenly desperate to move ahead. He wants to see Zayn’s cock, wants to make it thick and angry. He wants to make Zayn feel _good._ He poked his tongue out, rolling it gently down Zayn’s chest, over the ridges of his rib cage and stomach. He felt the muscles jump beneath the skin, heard Zayn’s gentle whine. It was when he mouthed at Zayn’s hips that the boy started _really_ fighting against the grip Liam had on his wrists, all but thrashing below him and whimpering in pleasure.

“Feel good?” Liam asks idly, sucking a bruise into the jut beneath his lips.

“Fuck,” was Zayn’s only response, head falling against the pillows while his back arched slightly. Liam pressed one more kiss to his skin before releasing Zayn’s wrists, if only because he needed to pull off Zayn’s clothes instead. Liam crawled backwards on the bed as he stripped Zayn of his sweats and briefs, revealing his gorgeous red cock and pale thighs, the smattering of hair on his naval inviting Liam closer. But Liam just moved further away, completely getting off the bed as he drops Zayn’s clothes to the floor.

“Turn over,” he directs. Zayn looks up at him curiously, but complies almost instantly. Liam’s cock jumps in his pants.

He watches as Zayn turns over, muscles moving elegantly beneath his skin, body turning slowly and revealing the swell of Zayn’s ass. Liam doesn’t miss the way Zayn’s gaze turns to the camera, and definitely doesn’t miss the way Zayn bites his lips and tilts his head seductively. Liam wonders what it would take to have Zayn lose his control again.

He makes quick work of shedding his shirt, but doesn’t bother with his pants. This video was about Zayn; he could get himself off later.

Zayn looks over his shoulder, then, eyes scanning over Liam’s chest and making Liam feel hot all over. “Wanna show me something new?” he asks, eyebrow raised.

Liam thinks he might actually faint.

Instead, miraculously, he manages to find the coordination to nod and crawl back onto the bed. He uses his knees to nudge Zayn’s legs further apart, before settling in comfortably right behind Zayn. He leans down, hands on Zayn’s thighs when he presses a gentle kiss to the bottom of his spine.

“Tell me to stop if you don’t like it,” he whispers quietly, hopefully low enough that the laptop microphone doesn’t pick it up. Zayn nods slightly, head dropping between his shoulders.

Liam presses his lips to Zayn’s spine again, mentally prepared himself. And then he surges down, and tentatively licks a stripe over Zayn’s hole.

Zayn’s reaction is instant. He lurches forward, a moan _ripped_ from his throat as his body jolts. Liam places his hands on Zayn’s ass cheeks, spreading them purposefully before driving in again, tonguing over the rim and feeling Zayn’s muscles jump in response.

“F-fuck,” Zayn manages out, hands giving out beneath him so he was only propped up by his elbows. His thighs quaked beneath Liam, the shake becoming worse when Liam grazed his teeth over Zayn’s hole. “Fuck, _Liam_ \- that feels…”

The words seem to leave him then. Liam reckons it’s because he starts pushing his tongue into Zayn’s tight heat, revelling in how fucking _responsive_ Zayn is, moaning lewdly whenever Liam flicked his tongue forward. Liam repositioned himself so he had more balance, and then held Zayn open as wide as he could before properly fucking Zayn with his tongue, rabbiting himself while Zayn’s whimpers cracked from the pleasure of it. Zayn fell more bodily onto the bed, arms completely giving way until his face was mashed against the mattress, facing the camera with his mouth wide open. He didn’t seem to mind too much, if the way he was fucking his hips back on Liam’s tongue was any sign.

“Oh, god,” Zayn moaned, high and needy. “Your mouth is- fuck, Liam!”

Liam grins against his skin, giving Zayn a moment before sucking on the rim again, eliciting a string of curses from the boy beneath him. Zayn’s whole body shudders, feeling so fragile beneath Liam’s fingers that Liam has the sudden urge to break him, to _ruin_ him. “You taste so fucking good,” Liam moaned, pulling back and revelling at the sight of Zayn stretched and vulnerable beneath him. “You don’t even know, _fuck._ ”

“Please, Liam,” Zayn whines again, pressing back more insistently. “Need to cum so bad.”

“Not yet, baby,” Liam tells him. He lets go of Zayn with one hand, instead using it to dance a finger over Zayn’s hole, not pushing in but just letting the tip catch on his taint before pulling back again. Zayn positively _whimpers_ beneath him, fingers clutching desperately at the sheets.

“ _Please_ ,” he begs again.

Liam shakes his head, even though he knows Zayn can’t see him. Zayn drops his pelvis to grind against the sheets, but Liam only allows it for just a moment, just a tease, before grabbing Zayn’s hips and pulling him up again. “Not yet,” he repeats.

Zayn whimpers a little, but Liam doesn’t think he minds – he’d tell him if he did. Liam positioned a finger against Zayn’s hole again, pressing gently. He didn’t push in, but Zayn almost slammed himself back on Liam’s fingers with the force in which he pushed back against him. Liam smirked a little before dropping down again, burying his face into Zayn’s hole, licking in and over him messily, stretching him just enough for Liam to push his index finger into his taint to the first knuckle. Zayn moaned and shuddered beneath him, before his legs became decidedly lax, completely relinquishing control again. Liam licked around his finger, pushing his tongue in alongside it, drunk on the way Zayn whined in response.

“Look at you,” Liam couldn’t help but comment lowly, pulling back so he could watch the way his finger fucked gently in and out of Zayn’s hole, drawing out the sweetest whimpers. “You fucking love this, don’t you? So fucking loud for me.”

“Liam,” Zayn whimpers again, saying his name in such a way that Liam’s cock thickened impossibly more. “Need to- need-”

“You’re fucking dripping,” Liam says in awe, leaning over to see Zayn’s cock, purple from neglect, hanging rigidly from Zayn’s body, desperate for release. Liam fingered over the slit of Zayn’s cock with his unoccupied hand, teasing Zayn with the tip of his finger while his other hand drove the tiniest bit deeper into his hole. Zayn choked on a moan. “Wanna cum, baby?”

“Fuck,” Zayn says, pushing himself back onto his elbows so he can look back at Liam. “I really do, Liam, _fuck-_ “

“Soon, I promise,” Liam tells him. “But first I want you to ride my face, okay?”

Zayn pauses, looking over his shoulder. But then he’s scrambling up the bed, looking so fucking needy and desperate that Liam couldn’t stop himself from gently squeezing his own erection. Liam crawled further up the bed and flipped over, getting comfortable while Zayn moved over him with shaking legs. Liam expected him to face the headboard so he could use the frame for leverage, but instead he clambered on the other way, balls brushing briefly over Liam’s lips before Zayn’s hole was hovering just above him.

“Go for it,” Liam whispered.

Zayn did. And, fuck, he was a _pro_ at it, grinding down onto Liam’s tongue and letting out breathy moans. Liam kept his hands on the bed, content to let Zayn work at his own pace, but didn’t hold back from fucking his tongue up into Zayn’s heat. Zayn’s thin hands came to rest on Liam’s chest for balance, making pinpricks of heat dance across Liam’s torso.

Zayn quickly found a rhythm, alternating between grinding on Liam’s mouth and bouncing on his tongue, letting out a string of curses that made Liam’s cock fucking _ache_ where it was still trapped in his pants. He told himself that this was worth it, feeling and hearing Zayn turn into a mess above him.

“Oh, god,” Zayn moaned, bouncing onto Liam’s tongue again. “Fuck, Liam, you feel so fucking incredible. Wanna- can I- fuck…”

Liam raises his hands then, just enough to push Zayn an inch of his tongue and whisper “ _cum for the camera, babe”_ before removing his hands and letting Zayn drop back onto his mouth. He licks a stripe over Zayn’s taint before Zayn gets a chance to move again, eliciting a loud whimper before Zayn started grinding his hips more reverently. Liam felt Zayn remove a hand from Liam’s chest and shift his weight, before he heard the slick sound of Zayn jerking a hand over his cock, sounding so quick that Liam imagines it would look like a blur. Liam opens his mouth impossibly wider and swivels his head in figure eights while Zayn’s hips stutter above him, everything sounding and feeling and _tasting_ so filthy that Liam couldn’t help but let out his own moans, making Zayn shudder even more wildly.

“Fuck,” Zayn cried out, thighs tightening on either side of Liam’s head. “Oh, shit, Liam- fuck, fuck, _fuck, Liam-“_

Zayn was silent when he came, hips jerking in abortion on Liam’s tongue, thick strings of cum falling onto Liam’s chest. Liam’s cock jumped in undisguised interest, probably tenting his pants obscenely, so close to Zayn’s mouth when he ducked his head as he rode out his high. Liam licked him through it, grinning a little when Zayn finally lets out a last, broken whimper, voice sounding absolutely wrecked.

Liam waited for Zayn to climb off, but he didn’t. Instead, Liam felt warm, nimble hands pushing down his pants just enough for his cock to spring free. Liam hissed from the friction of the material running over his bare cock, kicking his legs a little because his prick was _so close_ to Zayn’s mouth, just standing up, neglected and probably red with need-

And then Zayn’s mouth was on him, sucking insistently on the tip. He didn’t bother with bobbing his head, or trying to draw it out longer. Instead he just jerked Liam with one hand while his tongue flicked _perfectly_ over Liam’s slit, making Liam buck his hips and gasp into Zayn hole, still pressed against his mouth. Zayn just sucked harder, making lovely slurping noises as he sucked with determination. Liam moaned brokenly thinking about it, desperately wishing Zayn would raise his hips enough that Liam could praise him, tell him how good it felt and how fucking perfect Zayn was.

Liam felt the coil in his stomach tighten with record speed, twisting and clamping around his muscles, making Liam feel so tight and rigid for a second, two, three, before Zayn sucked just that little bit harder and Liam was cuming, shooting his load into Zayn’s mouth and groaning into Zayn’s taint.

“Fuck,” he muttered when Zayn finally raised his hips. Zayn crawled off of him unsteadily, thighs quaking. Liam gently guided him in by the neck, fucking his tongue filthily into Zayn’s mouth, tasting himself on Zayn’s tongue and letting Zayn do the same. They both were breathing harshly, so harshly that Liam could only sustain the kiss for a moment before he pulled back, desperately needing air. He flopped back onto the bed as Zayn fumbled his way off the bed, walking a little oddly as he approached the camera. Liam watched as Zayn wiped a bit of cum off his cheek and sucked it into his mouth, smiling cheekily at the camera as he did, before turning the feed off.

His demeanour changed, then, slowly going back to his original self as he quickly emailed the video to the porn company and hobbled back over to the bed, collapsing unceremoniously next to Liam.

“God,” Zayn said, half muffled by a pillow. He blinked his eyes open, looking over at Liam with awe. “That was amazing.”

Liam fought off a blush. “Yeah?”

“Fucking phenomenal,” Zayn confirmed. His smile turned soft then, burrowing himself more fully into the mattress while he ducked his head a little. “You called me ‘baby’.”

Liam’s face flushed in embarrassment. “Sorry.”

“No, it’s, uh,” Zayn stuttered, shaking his head. “It’s okay. Really.”

Zayn looked back at him again, soft smile still there while Liam just watched him.

“I sort of liked it,” Zayn admits quietly. “Like, while doing that stuff… it sort of makes me feel like I’m being taken care of, you know?”

“Oh,” Liam says. He tries not to let his chest swell too much with pride, having made Zayn feel that way. “Do you want me to keep saying it?”

Zayn nods, biting his lip gently. He closes his eyes for a bit, breathing gently before suddenly pushing up on shaking arms, letting out a sigh. “Up and at ‘em,” he tells Liam, sounding much different than before. “Harry’s coming for dinner, so we should probably get dressed.”

Liam furrows his eyebrows in confusion. “What?”

“I thought I told you,” Zayn says, tilting his head. Then he shrugs. “Harry’s bringing take away for us, so don’t worry. And we can watch a movie we all like. It’ll be cool.”

“Alrighty then,” Liam says, begrudgingly getting up from Zayn’s warm bed.

Over the next hour, Liam couldn’t help but feel like the biggest dick in the entire world. Because here was Zayn with a friend over, grinning at Harry’s oddly worded jokes, laughing at Harry’s running commentary of the X Factor contestants and looking really happy, all in all, and all Liam could focus on was how Zayn had buried his toes under Harry’s thighs to keep them warm, and how the two of them were sharing their food. Liam wished he could do that, but he’d gotten sweet and sour pork, and of course it happened to have the _one meat_ that Zayn didn’t eat.

And, fuck, Harry really was nice. Liam didn’t know much about him and struggled to understand his accent sometimes, but he’d made sure to greet Liam when he arrived, asked a bunch of questions about his course and such, and was really trying to not overstep.

Liam wondered when the last time they had sex was.

He stands up suddenly and clears his throat, ignoring the curious look Zayn gave him. “I need to talk to Niall,” Liam lied, scratching the back of his neck. Zayn looks like he’s about to say something but then stops himself and shrugs. Liam leaves straight away.

Fuck, it’s not fair of him to be having those thoughts. Zayn isn’t _his._ He’s not allowed to be all jealous and gross about Zayn’s sex life.

When he knocked on Niall’s door, he heard a shout of “ _it’s open_ ” before he let himself in. Inside, he found a dorm room that was almost identical to Liam’s own, but reversed. Liam wondered idly who Niall’s roommate, whether he had one or not.

“Hey,” Niall greeted, seemingly undisturbed by Liam’s random visit. He was in the kitchen, rolling balls of cookie dough in his hands and putting them delicately on a tray. “What’s up?”

Liam shrugged and wandered over to the kitchen bench. “Nothing much,” he says, avoiding Niall’s eyes. “What’re you up to?”

“Making cookies,” Niall tells him. “I won a bet.”

Liam tilted his head in confusion. “So you have to cook?”

“So they have to eat my cooking.”

Liam snorts at this. Truthfully, the cookies actually smell pretty good. Maybe Niall’s planning on burning them to a crisp. Then Liam spies the open bag of salt on the bench and understands.

“Anyway,” Niall says, using his elbows to drag another tray closer to himself. “Can you and Zayn hurry up and get together?”

Liam chokes on air.

“Like, not to be blunt or anythin’, mate,” Niall continues. “But you guys would make really pretty babies, and I think it’s something the world needs.”

“First of all, neither of us have a uterus,” Liam says. “Secondly: what the fuck, Niall.”

“Sorry,” Niall says, not looking sorry at all.

Liam doesn’t know how to reply, so he doesn’t. Instead he helps Niall coat the new tray in spray oil when Niall discovers he’s not able to do anything properly with dough-covered hands. Niall laughs a little at Liam’s bewildered expression, but not unkindly. Liam gets the sense that Niall’s being genuine rather than teasing him, unlike Louis who seems to enjoy pushing Liam’s buttons half the time. Once finished, Liam makes the mistake of popping a finger-full of dough in his mouth and gags.

“Can I ask a question, though?” Niall asks. Liam nods, settling into one of the kitchen stools. “Is there anything between you two at all? Like, a crush, or summat?”

Liam shrugs. “I guess.”

Niall raises an eyebrow.

“It’s complicated,” Liam says. “I’ve liked him for ages but we’re roommates, yeah? And he’s not… he hasn’t really been with any guys before, so.”

“Doesn’t have to mean anything,” Niall pointed out.

“He’s got a guy over currently who he may or may not be sleeping with,” Liam says. “Does that mean anything?”

“Is that why you’re here?” Niall countered. Liam didn’t think there was much of a point in denying it, so he stayed quiet. ­Niall smiles sympathetically. “I thought so. And I don’t suppose you’d be up to just talking to Zayn about it, would you?”

“Definitely not,” Liam says immediately, hoping to god that Niall isn’t getting any ideas from this conversation.

“Thanks fine,” Niall assures him. “No one should ever be forced like that, you know? So I’m not going to force you to out yourself to Zayn, even if I think it’d help.”

Liam froze a little. “You do?”

“Yeah,” Niall says, a tone in his voice suggesting he thought the answer was obvious. “Whenever I saw you guys around campus, I never thought that your crush was one-sided. He’s got heart-eyes too, Payno.”

“Good to know,” Liam said, although he doesn’t believe Niall one bit. Louis used to say the same sort of things, but stopped when he realised Liam wasn’t falling for his crap. Niall would figure it out soon enough, too.

 

+

 

About seven months after moving into the campus dorms, Liam stumbled back into the apartment, a little bit past tipsy after a night out at the pub with his new footy team. It had been a celebration of the finalised team, and Liam and Louis were so psyched to be on the team that Liam didn’t even think to consider the fact that he was getting drunk on a Sunday.

He closed the front door softly, sober enough to know that Zayn was probably asleep by now, and Liam knows Zayn well enough to know that sleep is something Liam should not take away from him. So Liam tread through the apartment praying to god that he didn’t slip on a banana like in a cartoon and stumble into a bunch of crockery. Liam isn’t entirely sure if they actually have any crockery in the apartment, but figures it doesn’t matter all that much. The point remains.

Liam pauses when he hears soft singing coming from Zayn’s room. His voice was soft but deliberate, carrying a tune Liam didn’t recognise and lyrics he can’t remember. He had crept towards the door, enthralled, wondering why Zayn wasn’t majoring in music instead of art because his voice was _amazing_ , which led Liam to wondering exactly how good Zayn’s art is if it’s managed to trump his _singing, fuck,_ and then suddenly Liam’s stepped too far and a floorboard squeaks beneath him. Zayn stops singing immediately, and then Liam hears soft footfalls before Zayn’s opening his door, looking surprised and a bit embarrassed. He goes to say something, but then Liam suddenly hiccups (surprising himself, if he’s honest), and Zayn’s expression turns soft and fond.

“Had a fun night?” he asks quietly.

“Wish you’d’ve – hic – come out with us,” Liam says, a little too loud in the quiet room. “Sorry.”

“What’re you apologising for?” Zayn asks, looking a little amused.

“’m too loud,” Liam says. “’m sorry.”

Zayn shakes his head fondly. He reaches out a gently grabs Liam’s hand, pulling him into the room and shutting the door behind them. “C’mon, Li,” Zayn says quietly. “Nap time for you, I think.”

Liam doesn’t protest, just kicks off his shoes (using Zayn’s shoulders to balance while his head swims) before crawling onto Zayn’s bed and all but face-planting into one of the pillows. He turns his head slowly, grinning lazily up at Zayn, who was closing down tabs on his computer and shutting it down. “You’re a – hic – a good – hic – singer, you know.”

Zayn ducks his head a little and doesn’t answer. He looks like he’s purposely ignoring Liam when he turns around and starts rummaging for a bed shirt.

Liam pouts. “It’s true,” he says. “Usher would be proud.”

“You’re very drunk,” Zayn comments idly. He swaps his shirt and pulls off his jeans before climbing into the bed as well, burying himself under the covers. Liam watches him for a moment before Zayn cracks an eye open. “Go to sleep, Li.”

“The lights are still on,” Liam whispers.

“No they’re not,” Zayn whispers back. And oh, right, they’re not. Liam pulls the blankets over him and turns to face Zayn again, grinning at him with only a crack of moonlight through the curtains illuminating his face. Zayn smiled back softly, looking beyond exhausted and a little sweaty. Liam wondered why he’d been up so late, but quickly fell asleep before he could ask about whichever project Zayn had been working on.

Liam had woken up the next morning with a pounding head and a foul taste in his mouth, but he felt warm and content cuddled in that bed, Zayn’s feet hooked under Liam’s calves and his sleeping face only a foot away. Liam thinks that’s the exact moment his crush turned into something dangerously more tangible.

“What’re you thinking about?” Zayn asks, breaking Liam out of his reverie. Liam refocusses himself, absently noting that Zayn had moved on from cooking toasties and was now cutting them up and putting them on plates.

“Nothing,” Liam says quickly, blinking hazily through his hangover. After making cookies Niall had decided that they have a beer, which turned into a night of light drinking that really messed with Liam’s light-weight blood. “Just tired. Sorry. Were you saying something?”

“Not really,” Zayn says. “I’m almost as tired as you are. Harry decided he wanted to teach me some Russian, and refused to let me sleep until I could say some ridiculous sentence that I’m pretty sure translates to ‘ _my donkey is a river waffle_ ’.”

Liam grins. “Let’s hear it, then.”

“Not a chance.”

Zayn turns to grab some glasses out of the cupboard, reaching up so that his shirt rode up like a crop top. Liam eyed the hickies on his visible hip, ones that made Liam blush as he remembered putting them there.

Fuck, Zayn was just so _normal_ about this whole thing. He hadn’t even mentioned the video since, and hadn’t said or done anything to make Liam feel awkward or pervy. Instead he’s just the same old Zayn, always willing to help him out and never questioning Liam even when he probably should.

“Thanks,” Liam says when Zayn slides a plate in front of him.

“No problems,” Zayn replies easily.

“No, Zayn, _thank you,_ ” Liam says earnestly. Zayn pauses, looking at him curiously. Liam swallows thickly before continuing. “Thank you for everything you’ve done lately. Like, with the videos, and stuff. You’ve honestly saved me. And I just want you to know I’m really thankful, yeah?”

Zayn watches him for a moment, eyes calm and serious, before he ducks and shakes his head bashfully. “You’ve got nothing to thank me for. Really.”

Liam’s just amazed that someone like Zayn Malik exists in real life.

 

+

 

Liam wakes up from a mid-evening nap to Louis storming into the apartment, a huge box in his arms. “You’ve got a package, Malik!” he yells.

Zayn stumbles out of his room, looking disgruntled after getting presumably five minutes of sleep after getting home from his last lecture. Liam sits up on the couch, narrowing his eyes at Louis.

“Oh, liven up,” Louis says, dumping the box on the coffee table. “I saved you a trip to campus reception.”

“How did you get your hands on my mail?” Zayn asks, sounding exhausted. “You need my student ID. And me.”

Louis just waves him off. “Open it! It’s big. Your mum’s probably sent a bunch of sweets again.”

“You’re not getting your hands on me mum’s sweets,” Zayn told him firmly.

“She’d be so lucky.”

“ _Lou._ ”

Louis squawked indignantly when Zayn punched his shoulder. Liam slowly got himself off the couch, knowing he wasn’t going to get any more sleep while Louis was in the room. He tread over to the kitchen and dropped himself into a stool while Zayn got out a knife to open the box. Louis flopped ungracefully onto Liam’s lap, making himself comfortable despite Liam’s groans for him to fuck off. Eventually Liam just gave in and wrapped an arm around Louis’ waist so he wouldn’t fall off.

Zayn stabbed into the box a little harder than necessary, looking a lot like an annoyed kitten, pointedly ignoring Louis and muttering under his breath. He rips the flaps open with unnecessary strength, too, and narrows his eyes into the box.

Then freezes.

“What is it, then?” Louis asks, trying to peer over. Liam holds him steadily, lest he fall off and kick Liam in the shins as retaliation.

Zayn suddenly grabs the box and pushes it way away from Louis. “Nothing,” he squeaks.

“What?” Louis says, trying to look past Zayn, who was now using his body as a shield from the box’s contents. “Lemme see-“

Zayn gives Liam an obviously, pleading look, so Liam tightens his hold on Louis and resolutely doesn’t let go while Zayn quickly closes the box and rushes to his room, locking the door.

“What the fuck,” Louis says, shoving Liam a little when he finally releases him. Louis looks at Zayn’s shut door, eyes glinting. “Probably some kinky shit, otherwise he would have shown me.”

“It was probably food from his mum that he doesn’t want you stealing,” Liam says. “Remember last time? He barely got to look at the box before you were running off with it.”

“It’s not my fault that Trisha’s an amazing cook. And a _stunner._ ”

“Time for you to go, I think,” Liam says, pointing at the door. “Did you need anything, or did you purely come here to demonstrate your lack of personal boundaries?”

“I came looking for entertainment, and I found some,” Louis shrugs easily.

Liam rolls his eyes, but can’t help but grin. Louis’ genuinely the most interesting person Liam’s ever met, a firecracker with a huge heart that he refuses to admit he wears on his sleeve. Liam guides him to the door, promising to have a coffee with Louis after training tomorrow, even though they both know neither of them will feel like consuming anything after another rigorous training session with Cowell.

Once Louis’ gone, Liam goes over to Zayn’s room and knocks gently. “Just me,” he says.

Zayn wanders over and unlocks the door, looking mostly mortified. “You’re not going to believe what the company sent us.”

Liam quirks an eyebrow in amusement and follows Zayn into his room, locking the door again behind them lest Louis come storming in again. Zayn stands in the corner and gestures towards the box, giving Liam the go ahead. Liam approaches it warily, not entirely sure what a porn company might send its new actors, and definitely not sure he’s going to like what he sees.

He folds back the lids of the box and looks in, breath catching in his throat.

Dildos. Dildos and cock rings and vibrating wands. Handcuffs. A blindfold. Liam’s face heated up immediately, not sure what to say after looking into a box of _sex toys._

“And the note,” Zayn says, pointing to a piece of paper next to the box on the bed. Liam picked it up warily. “It’s good to know I’m alright at acting.”

 

_Mr Malik & Mr Payne,_

_Here are a few props for your use. Feel free to use as many or as few as you are comfortable with. You may use them however and on whoever you like, although we have noted that the general audience is liking how responsive Mr Malik is, so we suggest a Zayn-centric video again. Don’t worry, Mr Payne, your turn will come, too._

_If you have any concerns or queries, feeling free to email us, and we will respond within twenty-four hours. Call and ask for Brexxx if it is urgent._

_Keep up the good work. Have fun._

_Regards,_

_Bubble Butt Boys (BBBᵀᴹ)._


End file.
